Former French Open champ Ostapenko dumped out of Shenzhen

Wednesday, 2 January 2019 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

BEIJING, AFP: Former French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko’s poor form continued Tuesday when she suffered a swift defeat at the hands of Romanian Monica Niculescu at the Shenzhen Open.

Jelena Ostapenko

Ranked 99th in the world, Niculescu swept past the Latvian world number 22 in less than an hour in a straight sets 6-0, 6-2 victory.

“I played all the week great,” said Niculescu, beaming and waving to a cheering crowd in a post-match interview.

“I think I played a solid game and I’m very happy that in the second set I could come back from 0-2,” she added.

Known for her distinctive style, which relies heavily on a sliced forehand, the Romanian quickly jumped out to a 5-0 lead, while Ostapenko struggled to play consistently in a match riddled with unforced errors.

The loss to Niculescu in Shenzhen follows a series of disappointing China tournaments for the Latvian tennis star.

Ostapenko endured a poor China Open last October, hampered by a wrist injury, before losing to a player ranked 299 places below her at the Hong Kong Open.

Niculescu, who qualified for the main draw, will next face Kristyna Pliskova of the Czech Republic, who moved through her opening match after China’s Peng Shuai dropped out due to a right thigh injury.

The tournament, which runs until Saturday, will see players battling for $750,000 in prize money.

Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event including Valentine ’s Day. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Flower Bouquets, Clothing, Watches, Lingerie, Gift Sets and Jewellery. Also if you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.