World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka faced another heartbreak at the Stuttgart Open on Monday, losing her fourth final at the tournament and missing out once again on the coveted Porsche that comes with the winner’s trophy. In a surprising moment, the Belarusian star refused to accept the runners-up trophy after falling in straight sets to unseeded Latvian Jelena Ostapenko, who triumphed 6-4, 6-1.
Ostapenko, ranked 18th in the world, clinched her first clay-court title since winning the 2017 French Open. The 2025 Stuttgart Open victory also marks her first WTA singles title since February 2024.
The 26-year-old Sabalenka has now finished as runner-up in Stuttgart for four out of the last five seasons—losing to Ashleigh Barty in 2021 and to Iga Swiatek in both 2022 and 2023. All of them were World No. 1 at the time. Ironically, Sabalenka entered this year’s final as World No. 1 herself, hoping it would finally tip the odds in her favor.
Ahead of the match, Sabalenka joked about her motivation:
“Please, I beg you (Ostapenko). Please, please. I need this car. I want to put this thing (tick-mark gesture) next to the goal.”
Despite her hopes, Ostapenko proved dominant throughout the tournament, defeating top players including second-seed Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals and seventh-seed Emma Navarro in the Round of 16.
In a gracious victory speech, Ostapenko praised Sabalenka:
“It’s great to share the court with you — you’re a champion… I’m sure you hate me now because you wanted this car so badly, but I’m sure you’ll get it another time.”
Sabalenka, ever the sportswoman, accepted the defeat with humility:
“You were a better player than me, that’s all there is to it.”
Sabalenka, a two-time Grand Slam winner in 2024 (US Open and Australian Open), is still hunting for her first clay-court title since the 2023 Madrid Open.
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