Ostapenko to face Kasatkina in first round in Wuhan

Latvian tennis player Jelena Ostapenko and Australia's Daria Kasatkina meet today in the first round of the Wuhan tournament, which belongs to the WTA 1000 category, the second-highest level of the women's professional tennis tour. The winner will face American Jessica Pegula, ranked fourth in the world, in the second round.

Ostapenko is currently ranked 34th and Kasatkina 82nd, although Kasatkina once reached eighth place in the world rankings. The source describes Ostapenko as the best tennis player from the Baltic states and Kasatkina as Australia's fourth-ranked racket.

Head-to-head record

Ostapenko leads their previous meetings 6-2 and has won all of the last four. This season Ostapenko has 23 wins and 20 losses, while Kasatkina has 22 wins and 20 losses.

Past achievements

Both players are 29 years old. Ostapenko won the French Open title in 2017 (the French Open is one of the four Grand Slam events) and reached the Wimbledon semifinal in 2018. In her career she has won nine WTA tournaments, including last April's final of the WTA 500 event in Stuttgart on clay.

Kasatkina reached the French Open semifinal in 2022 and has won eight significant titles.

The Wuhan tournament

This is Ostapenko's fifth appearance in Wuhan, and her best result there is a semifinal in 2017. Kasatkina is competing in the tournament for the sixth time, with four round-of-16 appearances as her best results. The temperature during the match is forecast to reach 27 degrees.