Jasmine Paolini broke down in tears during her second-round match at the Stuttgart Open, moments before Zeynep Sonmez sealed a dominant victory. The Italian, who reached Grand Slam finals in 2024, fell 6-2, 6-2 in just 75 minutes. Sonmez advanced to face Leylah Fernandez.
Zeynep Sonmez controlled the match from the start against Jasmine Paolini. The Turkish player broke Paolini in the opening and fifth games to take the first set 6-2. She carried the momentum into the second set, leading 5-2 when Paolini's frustration boiled over into tears during the changeover, as captured in a widely shared video on social media. Sonmez then closed out the 6-2 win without faltering. Paolini's emotional display echoed a similar moment at last year's Dubai Tennis Championships, where a fall led to tears before a loss to Sofia Kenin. This defeat marks another low in Paolini's challenging 2026 season. She has slipped from world No. 3 to No. 8 with a 10-6 record, facing pressure from points to defend after last year's semifinal run here. Recent results include a third-round exit at the Australian Open, first-round loss to Maria Sakkari in Qatar, and defeats to Alex Eala in Dubai, Cristina Bucșa in Mérida semifinals, Talia Gibson at Indian Wells, and Jeļena Ostapenko in Miami. To address her form, Paolini restructured her team. She parted ways with Marc Lopez after a brief stint and ended a decade with Renzo Furlan. Now coached by Danilo Pizzorno, formerly with Liudmila Samsonova, and Sara Errani for tactics, announced on Italian TV, the changes have yet to yield consistent results as clay season approaches.