Ostapenko ends Swiatek's Stuttgart run to extend head-to-dead dominance

The five-time Grand Slam winner lost 3-6, 6-3, 2-6 to the world No 24 in just under two hours and 10 minutes in the quarter-finals of the WTA 500 tournament.

The World No 2 remains without a win against Ostapenko and now holds a 0-6 record against the 2017 French Open champion.

This was Swiatek's first defeat to Ostapenko on her favoured clay courts, with the previous four on hard courts and the first meeting on grass.

Ostapenko surged into a 4-0 lead as she made a blistering start to the match and broke Swiatek three times en route to winning the opening set in convincing fashion.

Swiatek was unable to consolidate a 3-1, break advantage in the second set, but her second break of the 27-year-old Latvian's serve at 4-3 proved decisive as she levelled the contest.

It ended a run of five consecutive sets Swiatek had lost against Ostapenko, but that momentum was instantly lost as she swiftly fell 0-3 behind in the decider.

The 23-year-old Pole had her only chance to break back in a crucial 11-point seventh game, but Ostapenko held firm before breaking to seal another impressive win.

Swiatek's quarter-final exit in Stuttgart extends her title drought. The former World No 1 has not reached a final since winning the French Open in June last year.

Asked about her inability to beat Ostapenko, Swiatek said: "Well, I think today was a tight match, so for sure I had my chances to win.

"Before, these matches were different. Like, she went for it and she was smashing every ball kind of perfectly. Today she didn't, she made some mistakes. I had my chances. I just didn't use them." 

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