Ostapenko rallies past Ruse to reach Round 32

In the WTA 1000 Rome tournament, Jelena Ostapenko came from a set down to defeat Elena-Gabriela Ruse 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, advancing to the round of 32. Next, she will face China’s Zheng Qinwen.

Ostapenko served first in the opening set, but her first service game was broken as Ruse combined breaks and holds to take a 2-0 lead. Ostapenko broke back in the fourth game to level at 2-2, but Ruse then broke Ostapenko’s serve in two consecutive service games. Although Ostapenko earned three break points in each of two Ruse service games, Ruse held both times and closed the set 6-2 after winning four straight games with a sequence of breaks and holds.

Ostapenko again served first in the second set, and once more she was broken in her opening service game. This time, however, she responded immediately with a break back in the second game and broke again in the fourth, turning the score around to 4-1 with a break-and-hold run. Ruse saved three break points to hold in the sixth game, but Ostapenko then held comfortably for 5-2. Ruse failed to hold in her must-win service game, and Ostapenko took the set 6-2 to level the match.

In the third set, Ostapenko served first and held before striking first with a break in the second game. Ruse broke back in the third and then held to make it 2-2. After Ostapenko held, she broke again in the sixth game; Ruse broke back once more in the seventh, but Ostapenko answered with another break in the eighth to lead 5-3 and earn the chance to serve for the match. She ultimately won the decider 6-3, completing a 2-1 comeback to reach the Rome round of 32.

Notably, Ostapenko and Zheng have previously met three times on hard courts, with Zheng winning all three. Their most recent meeting dates back to 2023, and the article notes that the two have both changed significantly over the past three years. Their three hard-court meetings were: the first round of the 2022 US Open, where Zheng won 6-3, 3-6, 6-4; the second round in Abu Dhabi in 2023, where Zheng won 7-6, 6-1; and the 2023 Zhuhai event, where Zheng won 6-4, 1-6, 6-2.