Ostapenko set to face Zhang Shuai in Toronto second round

Alona Ostapenko has learned who she will face in the second round of the WTA 1000 tournament in Toronto. The Latvian player's opponent will be China's Zhang Shuai, who completed her first-round match on Monday.

Zhang, currently 57th in the WTA rankings, beat Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva 6-4, 6-1 in the opening round. Putintseva is ranked 81st. Ostapenko, who is 29th in the world and seeded 26th in Toronto, did not have to play in the first round.

The two tennis players have met twice before. They faced each other in Rome in 2018 and in Indian Wells in 2019, with Ostapenko winning both matches.

Toronto will be Ostapenko's first tournament after Wimbledon, where she reached the third round. Zhang lost in the second round at Wimbledon and then played at the WTA 500 event in Washington, where she was eliminated in her opening match.

If Ostapenko defeats Zhang, her next opponent will be world number one Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus or Japan's Moyuka Uchijima, who is ranked 107th.

Last year, in early August, Ostapenko reached the third round at the WTA 1000 tournament in Cincinnati, where she then lost. This year she has to defend 65 ranking points.