Fierce youngster Jelena Ostapenko felt like she owned the place when she stepped on the Philippe Chatrier Court to face way more experienced Simona Halep in the 2017 French Open final. The 20-year-old Latvian was brave enough to always stick to her aggressive game, even when it didn’t bring results, and in the end her offense, despite a pile of unforced errors, outperformed the third-seeded Romanian and prevented her from overtaking the No.1 ranking from Angelique Kerber. When a young player reaches a Grand Slam final for the first time, we often see a total meltdown, but Ostapenko left us in awe with her absolute fearlessness, even though her best Grand Slam result prior to this Roland Garros had been the third round.
Jelena Ostapenko’s French Open triumph in PHOTOS
