Jelena Ostapenko doesn’t care what the floor is — she merely loves enjoying in Linz. The World No. 23 has received a title and reached a last in her three earlier journeys to the Austrian metropolis, when the occasion was performed on indoor onerous courts.
This yr it’s on clay, and she or he’s liking the vibes on the newly minted 500-level occasion.
“I’ve nice recollections from right here,” she informed the group.
Ostapenko took out Alexandra Eala on Wednesday, 6-4, 7-5, to enhance to 9-2 lifetime in Linz, as she earned her first win in three tries towards the hard-charging southpaw.
“After I noticed the draw, I used to be like, ‘Wow, that’s a tricky second spherical for me,’” she stated. “She’s an excellent participant. This yr, some good issues are taking place. I’m beating gamers that I’ve by no means overwhelmed earlier than, so it means I’m on the fitting path.”
The appropriate method for Ostapenko turned out to be a method — onerous and hardest. She clocked 41 winners to simply 9 for Eala, defeating the 20-year-old for the primary time in three conferences.
She rallied from 4-2 down within the opening set, taking the ultimate 4 video games, then pulled one other trick out of her hat in set two, climbing again from 4-0 down to complete off the Filipina sensation in straight units.
Ostapenko transformed six of her 9 break-point alternatives to maneuver on to face Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse within the quarterfinals.
“I used to be down within the second set, and I informed myself, ‘Okay, I’m gonna struggle. I’ll do every thing potential. I’ll struggle until the tip of the set, and if there’s a third set, it’s effective — I nonetheless have one other probability,’” she stated. “I feel it labored fairly properly. I began to play my sport and I didn’t give her loads of probabilities.”
Ostapenko stated that when she heard the match was shifting to clay, she was excited.
“Actually, tremendous completely satisfied, tremendous excited. I used to be like, ‘Wow, clay, I find it irresistible,’” she stated. “It’s even higher. I feel it’s nice, particularly earlier than Stuttgart — there’s one other clay-court match, as a result of the clay season is tremendous quick. Since I received the French Open, I get pleasure from enjoying on clay a lot. So it’s one other alternative, and in an excellent place.”
The 2017 Roland Garros champion has solely lately began her clay-court follow, however she already appears comfy on the crushed purple floor.
“At present was my third day on clay, so I’m doing fairly okay, I suppose,” she stated.
Andreeva Defeats Stephens in Linz Debut
Mirra Andreeva, enjoying her first match on clay since Roland-Garros, and received decisively over former Roland-Garros finalist Sloane Stephens, 6-4, 6-2.
“It was a tough match, clearly she’s a Grand Slam champion, and she or he has that have,” Andreeva stated. “Tremendous completely satisfied that I bought by means of this match, I felt like I actually didn’t have the rhythm after 5-1 within the first set, so I’m completely satisfied that I stayed calm, performed my sport and received the match.”
Andreeva will face both Dalma Galfi or Sorana Cirstea within the quarterfinals.
