Alena Ostapenko Begins at Roland Garros: Can the 2017 Champion Surprise Paris Again? 0 13

Alena Ostapenko will begin her performance at the French Open today, which is taking place in Paris. In the first round, the Latvian will face 21-year-old German tennis player Ella Seidel.

The match will take place on court six and is expected to start around 16:00 Latvian time.

Currently, Ostapenko is ranked 31st in the WTA rankings and is seeded 29th in the tournament. Her opponent is in 97th place in the world rankings. The two players have not faced each other before.

For Ostapenko, this year's Roland Garros will be her 12th in her career. The tournament in 2017 remains particularly memorable for her, as the Latvian athlete sensationally won the title, etching her name in the history of world tennis and Latvian sports.

Since then, the Paris tournament has been much more challenging for her. After her championship season, Ostapenko has not advanced past the third round. It was at this stage that she concluded her performance a year ago.

For many Latvian fans, Roland Garros is still associated with Ostapenko's unexpected breakthrough nine years ago. Therefore, each new performance by the tennis player in Paris attracts heightened attention — even despite the unstable results of recent seasons.

This year, the Latvian has not yet won any tournaments. In the season, she has 15 wins and 12 losses. Seidel has 11 wins in 27 matches. This will be the German athlete's debut in the main draw of the French Open: in the previous two years, she was eliminated in qualifying.

The winner of the match will play against Polish tennis player Magda Linette, who is ranked 57th in the WTA rankings, in the second round.

Latvia's second-ranked player, Daria Semenistaya, previously concluded her participation in the tournament's qualifying rounds.

The French Open is the second Grand Slam tournament of the season. The competition in Paris will last until next weekend.