History of Jeļena Ostapenko in Timeline

Jeļena Ostapenko, also known as Aļona Ostapenko, is a Latvian professional tennis player celebrated for her aggressive playing style. She achieved career-high rankings of world No. 5 in singles and No. 4 in doubles. Her accomplishments include nine WTA Tour-level singles titles and eleven doubles titles. Notably, she won the 2017 French Open singles title and the 2024 US Open doubles title with Lyudmyla Kichenok, becoming the first Latvian to win a major in both singles and doubles.

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Full Timeline Career & Achievements

June 1997: Birth of Jeļena Ostapenko

In June 1997, Jeļena "Aļona" Ostapenko was born. She is now a Latvian professional tennis player.

Others born on this day/year

2007: Ana Ivanovic reaches French Open semifinals

In 2007, Ana Ivanovic reached the French Open semifinals, being the last teenager to achieve this before Ostapenko's success in 2017.

2013: Marion Bartoli's Wimbledon Win

In October 2019, Ostapenko partnered with Marion Bartoli, the 2013 Wimbledon champion, on a trial basis.

September 2014: Ranked No. 2 Junior Tennis Player

In September 2014, Ostapenko was ranked the No. 2 junior tennis player in the world.

2014: Wimbledon Championships Junior Title

In 2014, Ostapenko won the singles event at the junior Wimbledon Championships.

2016: First Round Loss at French Open

Between 2016 and 2019, Ostapenko was the only player to have won a Grand Slam title (2017 French Open), but lost in the first round the three other times she had competed at the same tournament, including in 2016 to Naomi Osaka.

2016: Olympic Debut

In 2016, Ostapenko made her Olympic debut at the Rio Summer Olympics, but lost in the first round to Samantha Stosur.

2016: Backhand as Strongest Weapon

In a 2016 interview, Crosscourt View labeled Ostapenko's backhand her "strongest weapon"; the same year, Hartford Courant stated that she "hits a lot of forehand winners".

2017: French Open Title and Playing Style

At the 2017 French Open, where Ostapenko won her first professional title, she regularly hit between 35 and 45 winners throughout her matches. Following her quarterfinal performance, she attracted multiple comparisons to Monica Seles. After the final match of that French Open, analysts highlighted that Ostapenko had 54 winners and 54 unforced errors, while Halep had eight winners and ten unforced errors.

2017: French Open Win

Between 2016 and 2019, Ostapenko was the only player to have won a Grand Slam title (2017 French Open).

2017: First French Open Round Progress

In 2017, Ostapenko progressed past the first round of the French Open for the first time, defeating Madison Brengle and Karolína Plíšková, before falling to Paula Badosa.

2017: Training with Anabel Medina Garrigues

In 2017, Ostapenko trained with two-time French Open doubles champion Anabel Medina Garrigues but parted company with her at the end of the year.

2017: WTA Tour Leader in Double Faults

In 2017, Ostapenko was the WTA Tour leader in double faults, hitting 436 double faults.

2017: First Title Since Seoul

In 2017, Ostapenko won her first title since Seoul, defeating defending champion Julia Görges in straight sets at Luxembourg.

2017: Aggressive Playing Style Analysis

In 2017, before her participation in the Charleston Open final, an article on the event's website declared that what was "most impressive about Ostapenko is her willingness to strike big to all corners of the court, be it a cross-court laser or a bold down-the-line winner."

2017: Multiple Titles in a Season

In 2017, it was the first time since then that she won multiple titles in a season.

2018: First Round Loss at French Open

October 2019: Partnership with Marion Bartoli

In October 2019, Ostapenko partnered with Marion Bartoli on a trial basis; their partnership resulted in Ostapenko reaching two finals in two weeks, and winning the title in Luxembourg.

2019: First Round Loss at French Open

2019: Continued Double Fault Issues

In 2019, Ostapenko was again the WTA Tour leader in double faults, hitting 436 double faults. In her first-round match at the China Open against Karolína Plíšková, she served 25 double faults and had a first-serve percentage of 49%, yet still won the match.

2020: End of Bartoli Partnership

After a poor start to the 2020 season, and Bartoli's pregnancy, Ostapenko ended their partnership during the suspension of the WTA Tour due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

2020: Death of Jevgēnijs Ostapenko

In 2020, Jeļena Ostapenko's father, Jevgēnijs Ostapenko, passed away.

2020: Advance to Second Round

In 2020, Ostapenko advanced to the second round of the French Open, after beating Madison Brengle.

2020: Withdrawal from Auckland Open

In 2020, Ostapenko withdrew from the Auckland Open following the sudden death of her father.

2020: Billie Jean King Cup Participation

In 2020, after participating in the Billie Jean King Cup, where she lost to Serena Williams but defeated Sofia Kenin, Ostapenko struggled with illness and jet lag, leading to a first-round loss at St. Petersburg.

2020: Summer Olympics Participation

In 2020, at the Summer Olympics, Ostapenko was a flagbearer for Latvia and participated in the singles and doubles tournaments, losing in the first round of both.

February 2021: Reunion with Marion Bartoli

In February 2021, Bartoli began coaching Ostapenko once again, following the birth of her daughter, at Doha.

May 2021: Madrid Open Semifinals

In May 2021, Ostapenko reached the semifinals in doubles at the Madrid Open with Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

August 2022: Top 10 Debut in Doubles

On August 22, 2022, as a result of winning the Cincinnati Open doubles title with Lyudmyla Kichenok, Ostapenko made her top 10 debut at No. 9 in the doubles rankings.