Ukrainian tennis player Yulia Starodubtseva failed to reach the semifinals of the WTA 500 tournament in Monterrey. In the quarterfinal match, she lost to the tournament's second seed, Belgium's Elise Mertens, with a score of 1:6, 4:6. The defeat ended Starodubtseva's run in Mexico at the quarterfinal stage.
Match progression: the second seed's dominance
Mertens won the first set with overwhelming superiority. The Belgian immediately seized the initiative, made two breaks, and confidently took the set 6:1. In the second set, Starodubtseva managed to take an early lead, but in the fifth game Mertens converted a break and regained the advantage, which she held until the end of the match, closing the set 6:4.
Second WTA 500 quarterfinal of her career
For the Ukrainian, this quarterfinal was her second at the WTA 500 level in her career. Starodubtseva first reached this stage in April at the tournament in Charleston, where she essentially exceeded expectations by making it to the final. Thus, Monterrey confirmed that the Ukrainian is capable of regularly competing with top opponents at the 500 level.
Return to form after a losing streak
Starodubtseva arrived at the Monterrey tournament after a streak of six consecutive defeats, so her result in Mexico became her best achievement since the clay-court part of the season. This is an important signal that the Ukrainian tennis player managed to break the negative run and regain confidence ahead of the year's key hard-court stage.
Ahead of the 2026 US Open
Starodubtseva's next tournament will be the US Open — the 2026 US Open. In the first round of the Grand Slam event, the Ukrainian is set to play Germany's Ella Seidel. In total, this season Starodubtseva has taken part in 22 tournaments, and her best result was a semifinal win and a run to the final in Charleston in April, where in the decisive match she lost to America's Madison Keys.
