Zhang Shuai finishes runner-up in Stuttgart

In the women’s doubles final at the 2026 Stuttgart Open, top seeds Zhang Shuai and Jeļena Ostapenko fell to fourth seeds Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Liudmila Samsonova in straight sets, 1–6, 1–6, missing out on the title.

Melichar-Martinez and Samsonova served first in the opening set. They held serve with ease while breaking Zhang and Ostapenko twice, reeling off five straight games to take a commanding 5–0 lead. Zhang and Ostapenko avoided the bagel by holding in the sixth game, but still dropped the set 1–6.

In the second set, Zhang and Ostapenko served first but were broken immediately. Melichar-Martinez and Samsonova followed with a hold to move ahead 2–0. Zhang and Ostapenko held in the third game, but were broken again in the fifth. In the sixth game, Zhang and Ostapenko missed three break points, allowing their opponents to hold for 5–1. Zhang and Ostapenko then failed to hold in a must-win service game, conceding the set 1–6 and the match 0–2.

Notably, this marked Zhang’s third appearance in the Stuttgart women’s doubles final—and her third runner-up finish at the event. Earlier, Zhang teamed up with Anastasija Sevastova to win the WTA 500 Linz title, capturing the 18th tour-level doubles title of her career. With the Stuttgart runner-up result, Zhang has now recorded one title and one runner-up finish in recent doubles action, underlining her strong form.