Ostapenko serve 'a liability more than a plus' according to Navratilova ahead of French Open

Former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko will try to win another French Open this year and Martina Navratilova analyzed her case.

Ostapenko put together a terrific February, winning the Dubai 500 and reaching the semifinals of the Doha 1000, losing there to Anett Kontaveit. Since then, though, she’s been one-and-done in Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid and Rome. In April, her ranking rose to No.11, her highest since 2018. Still only 24, she is the youngest active former champ after Swiatek.

On her, Navratilova said:

“To me, her serve gets in the way – she hasn’t improved it. I know she’s been working on it, but it’s a liability more than a plus. She has to work so much harder on points because she’s not getting any free ones. She’s still streaky and been better this year, so you can’t look past her. She loves that red clay at Roland, which is playing faster, which helps her shots pay off.”