Hours after Iga Swiatek's Wimbledon win, major rival Jelena Ostapenko loses chance to become World No. 1 after doubles final heartbreak

On Saturday, Iga Swiatek scripted history at the 2025 Wimbledon Championships, beating Amanda Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 in the final for her first singles title at SW19. It was the first double bagel served in a Grand Slam final at the tournament, and only the second in the Open Era.

Hours after her win, on Sunday, Jelena Ostapenko, a storied rival in Swiatek's history, lost the doubles crown with Hsieh Su-wei, going out in the final. With the loss, the Latvian lost the chance to become the doubles World No. 1 for the first time in her career.

In Sunday's final, the Ostapenko-Hsieh pair took on Veronika Kudermetova and Elise Mertens, the No. 8 seeds. After winning the first set 6-3, they lost the second 6-2. Although they had an early 4-2 lead, the No. 4 seeds suffered heartbreak, losing the decider 6-4. In the run-up to the final, Ostapenko and Hsieh also took down the No. 1-seeded pair in the tournament, Taylor Townsend and Katerina Siniakova.

Ostapenko, who won the 2017 French Open as an unseeded player, has one previous doubles Grand Slam to her name, winning the women's event at the 2024 US Open with Lyudmyla Kichenok. Hsieh, on the other hand, has four Wimbledon women's doubles titles and seven Slams overall. In mixed doubles, she has two more to her name, one each at the Australian Open and Wimbledon.

For Veronika Kudermetova, this is her first women's doubles Grand Slam title, while it is the fourth trophy for Mertens.

"I have a lot of respect for Iga Swiatek as a tennis player" - Jelena Ostapenko

Speaking to Sports Poland in an interview at the 2025 French Open, Jelena Ostapenko spoke about her rivalry with Iga Swiatek, shutting down claims that she and Swiatek had anything but a friendly relationship.

The Latvian was all praise for the World No. 4, insisting that she was primarily focused on herself and paid no heed to their head-to-head records on the tour.

"I don't pay attention to what is said about our rivalry, I don't think like that. I have a lot of respect for Iga as a tennis player. I focus primarily on myself, because if I play as well as I can, I can beat all the players," she said.

"I focus on what depends on me. I know my capabilities. I know when I feel the best, and if something doesn't go my way, I've been trying to work even harder on it in recent years. I think I can be a very dangerous competitor for any rival, not just for Iga," Jelena Ostapenko added.

Ostapenko is unbeaten against Swiatek in the WTA Tour, having won all six of their meetings so far.