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Jelena Ostapenko jokingly said she was feeling sleepy during the first set of her first-round match against Sorana Cirstea at the 2024 Adelaide International 1. Ostapenko eventually managed to overcome her drowsiness and win the match in three sets.
The Latvian, ranked No. 12 in the world, dropped the first set 6-2 but bounced back to win the next two sets 6-2 and 6-4. In an on-court interview after the match, she explained the reason behind her slow start.
"I was sleeping in the first set because I’m not an early morning person," she said with a smile.
Ostapenko, who won the 2017 French Open as an unseeded player, is known for her aggressive and unpredictable style of play. She has not reached the semifinals of a Grand Slam since 2018. However, the Latvian showed signs of improvement in the 2023 season, reaching the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and the US Open, losing to Elena Rybakina and eventual champion Coco Gauff, respectively.
Ostapenko also won a title in Birmingham and reached the semifinals of the Italian Open last year. She will face Caroline Garcia in the second round of the Adelaide International 1 on Wednesday, January 10.
A look at Jelena Ostapenko's performance at the 2024 Brisbane International
Jelena Ostapenko put in a strong performance at the 2024 Brisbane International, reaching the quarterfinals in singles and winning the title in doubles with her partner Lyudmyla Kichenok.
In singles, Ostapenko started her campaign with a straight-sets win over Camila Giorgi in the first round. She then faced a tough challenge from the two-time Grand Slam finalist Karolina Pliskova, who pushed her to three sets in the Round of 16. In the quarterfinals, the Latvian took on two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka, but eventually went down 6-3, 3-6, 7-5.
After the singles disappointment, Ostapenko bounced back in doubles with Kichenok. The duo won their opening-round match against Anna Kalinskaya and Ekaterina Alexandrova by a narrow margin, and then cruised past Magda Linette and Bernarda Pera in the quarterfinals 6-4, 6-4.
They received a walkover ahead of their semifinal match against Daria Kasatkina and Daria Saville. In the final, Ostapenko and Kichenok faced the unseeded pair of Greet Minnen and Heather Watson, and won comfortably in straight sets.
It was their third WTA team title together and their first since winning Cincinnati in 2022.
Jelena Ostapeko and Lyudmyla Kichenok are currently competing in the Adelaide International 1, where they are a set and a break up against Liudmila Samsonova and Jasmine Paolini.
