Eastbourne 2024: Jelena Ostapenko vs Greet Minnen preview, head-to-head, prediction, and pick | Rothesay International
Match Details
Fixture: (5) Jelena Ostapenko vs Greet Minnen
Date: TBD
Tournament: Rothesay International 2024
Round: First Round (Round of 32)
Venue: Devonshire Park LTC, Eastbourne, United Kingdom
Category: WTA 500
Surface: Grass
Prize Money: $922,573
Live Telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Tennis Channel, BBC | Canada - TSN+
Jelena Ostapenko vs Greet Minnen preview
Former champion Jelena Ostapenko returns to Eastbourne for the 2024 edition of the WTA 500 tournament. She will open her campaign with a first-round encounter against Greet Minnen.
Ostapenko, the fifth seed at this year’s tournament, has a solid history at the tournament. She has made two finals in the last three editions, winning in 2021 and losing to Petra Kvitova a year later.
The Latvian’s 23-10 win-loss for the season augurs well, but she did stumble in her first match on grass this season. The loss against Elisabetta Cocciaretto in the Birmingham Classic opener came as a shock and she will be looking to put the disappointment behind her by putting on a good show here this week.
Minnen, meanwhile, has made a solid start to her grass swing by reaching the quarterfinals in ‘s-Hertogenbosch. She had posted wins over big hitters in the form of Rebeka Masarova and Donna Vekic before losing to eventual champion Liudmila Samsonova.
The Belgian also has another grass quarterfinal under her belt, albeit on the ITF circuit. Her overall win-loss record this year, however, remains dismal at 14-20.
Jelena Ostapenko vs Greet Minnen head-to-head
Ostapenko leads Minnen in their head-to-head by a slender margin of 1-0, having beaten her at last year's Wimbledon Championships.
Jelena Ostapenko vs Greet Minnen odds
(Odds will be updated once available)
Jelena Ostapenko vs Greet Minnen prediction
The encounter will pit Jelena Ostapenko’s firepower against Greet Minnen’s counterpunching skills. The Latvian likes to go after each shot and her powerful groundstrokes work well on the quick grass courts as evidenced by her previous results in Eastbourne.
Minnen, unlike her opponent, is not the most comfortable on grass. Her 6-1, 6-2 drubbing at the hands of Ostapenko at last year’s Wimbledon exposed the chinks in her armor.
While she has made improvements to her game and tries to be more aggressive on the court, Minnen’s tendency to fall back into defensive patterns may put her in trouble against someone like Ostapenko.
The former champ is hungry for her first win on grass this season. With Wimbledon also around the corner, she is likely to be much more focused than she was in Birmingham.
Minnen will in all probability put on a better show than the last time these two met on grass if she can play with measured aggression and keep her error count in check. However, Ostapenko should still have enough in her arsenal to be able to power through.
Pick: Ostapenko to win in three sets