Iga Swiatek’s bid to defend her U.S. Open title came to an end with a fourth-round loss to Jelena Ostapenko. The match saw Ostapenko secure a 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory. This loss also means that Swiatek will relinquish her No. 1 ranking in the WTA rankings, with Aryna Sabalenka set to claim the top spot.
Ostapenko’s aggressive play and 31 winners compared to Swiatek’s 18 contributed to her victory. Ostapenko, who won the French Open in 2017, improved her record to 4-0 against Swiatek, making her the only player to have defeated the reigning WTA No. 1 four times.
Despite a brief resurgence from Swiatek in the second set, Ostapenko maintained her composure and dominated the third set, winning seven consecutive games. Her next opponent in the quarterfinals will be Coco Gauff, who previously faced Ostapenko at the Australian Open earlier in the year.
Ostapenko praised Gauff as a formidable opponent and expects another tough match in the quarterfinals.