ABU DHABI — No.5 seed Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia came out on top of a rollercoaster first round at the Abu Dhabi Open, edging American Danielle Collins 7-5, 1-6, 7-5 in 2 hours and 18 minutes.
Ostapenko, who collected her fifth and most recent title in Dubai, last February, is now on a six-match winning streak on the Emirati soil.
It was her second win in as many meetings at pro level with Collins; the Latvian also triumphed 7-6(1), 6-3 in the 2018 Miami semifinals.
No.12-ranked Ostapenko is fresh off a run to the Australian Open quarterfinals last month, and will face either Zheng Qinwen or qualifier Rebecca Marino in the second round.
Meanwhile on Day 1, Marta Kostyuk pulled off a remarkable drop shot from the baseline en route to her 6-2, 1-6, 6-2 first-round win over Sorana Cirstea.
The clash between two of the tour’s foremost exponents of first-strike power was characterised by unpredictable momentum swings.
In the first set, No.42-ranked Collins made the first move, breaking Ostapenko with a clean return winner for 4-3.
But the American double faulted down break point when serving for the set, and it was Ostapenko who stole the opening act with a four-game run.
Former Australian Open finalist Collins responded superbly in the second set, with three consecutive return winners paving the way to a double-break lead and setting the tone for a one-sided passage of play.
But Ostapenko wrested momentum back after capturing a titanic tussle at the start of the decider, converting her fifth break point to lead 2-1.
Three double faults in one game from the former Roland Garros champion allowed Collins to draw level at 4-4, but in the home stretch it was Ostapenko who was both more aggressive and more clutch. From 5-4 down, she powered through 12 of the last 15 points to seal victory.
“Danielle is a great player, and it’s always a tough match against her because she plays really well and she’s such a fighter,” Ostapenko said.
“The match is never over until we shake hands. I’m really glad that, even though in some games I didn’t play my best, I was fighting and I managed to win the match. These kinds of matches give confidence,” Ostapenko added.
