Jelena Ostapenko followed her Stuttgart trophy with a quarter-final surge in Madrid, collecting back to back top ten victories and solidifying a top five seed in Paris.
Her serve placement improved markedly, winning seventy five per cent of points behind the first delivery across six clay matches, a figure that once hovered near sixty.
Ostapenko attributes progress to a simplified ball toss and extended recovery strides between points that calm heart rate and sharpen shot selection. Coach Marion Bartoli believes the adjustment reduces double faults under pressure.
Mental focus also appears stronger. The Latvian speaks openly about meditation sessions introduced during preseason, crediting the routine for a calmer response when rallies slip away.
Stat trackers note a decline in unforced backhand errors, down five per match compared with last year’s European swing, suggesting greater margin on crosscourt exchanges.
With confidence blooming and courts playing slightly faster due to a drier Paris spring forecast, Ostapenko enters Roland Garros convinced that her best clay chapter remains unwritten.
