Jelena Ostapenko delays Doha press conference to watch Maria Sakkari-Iga Swiatek thriller

DOHA, Qatar—All eyes were on the conclusion of a dramatic Qatar TotalEnergies Open quarterfinal between top seed Iga Swiatek and Maria Sakkari, but few watched with more interest than Jelena Ostapenko.

The two-time finalist was first into the semifinals in Doha earlier on Thursday—defeating lucky loser Eisabetta Cocciaretto in straight sets—but still made time to scope out the competition after a long day of singles and doubles. Ostapenko delayed her press conference by about 10 minutes as the Latvian got pulled in by a nearby TV showing Sakkari serving for the match.

“I think it’s going to go to 5-5 or 6-6,” predicted Ostapenko as members of the press watched alongside her.

Ostapenko was right: Swiatek broke Sakkari’s serve and saved a match point to even the final set at five games apiece, but Sakkari needed no tiebreaker to dispatch Swiatek and clinched a 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 comeback under the lights.

In the opposite half of the draw, Ostapenko couldn’t face Sakkari before the final but saw no harm in scouting the player who could stand between her and a first title in Doha.

“Sometimes I really like to watch some matches because there's some really great matches,” Ostapenko smiled, her post-match press conference having finally begun. “Sometimes I am not in the mood to watch matches. So. when I watch matches, of course I analyze and I take some things what I can use against those players.”

The notoriously succinct Ostapenko, who also enjoying a winning week in doubles with partner Hsieh Su-Wei, is playing better with each round in Doha after a tough first match against Anastasia Zakharova.

“I feel like when I get in the game mode, like every match, also playing singles and doubles, I think I play better and better, and I get more used to the courts, the conditions,” she said.

Tennis is such a great sport because almost every next week we have opportunities to play again and again. So, if you're going to keep your head in losses, it's not very good for you. You just have to take some lessons from the matches you lose and move forward. Jelena Ostapenko

Ostapenko made her WTA breakthrough at this tournament back in 2016, and returned to the final just last year with a win over Swiatek. The 2017 Roland Garros champion is still yet to win a WTA 1000 title, but that could change this week in Doha should she win her next two rounds. First up, either Karolina Muchova or Anna Kalinskaya in the semis.

“Tennis is such a great sport because almost every next week we have opportunities to play again and again,” mused Ostapenko. “So, if you're going to keep your head in losses, it's not very good for you. You just have to take some lessons from the matches you lose and move forward.”