19-year-old Ostapenko is contending for the newcomers' title together with Naomi Osaka, Louisa Chirico, and Viktorija Golubic.
The winner will be decided by the media, coupled with a readers' vote at the WTA website (VOTE HERE).
Ostapenko won the junior Wimbledon title in 2014, and two years later found herself at a career-high ranking of No.34. Currently ranked No.45, the highlight of the 19-year-old's 2016 season came at the Qatar Total Open, where she reached the final at the Premier-5 level event.
In Doha, she defeated three Top 30 players along the way; she also enjoyed a run to the final four of the Katowice Open, as well as quarterfinal appearances in Birmingham and Florianopolis.
Last year Australia's Daria Gavrilova was named the Newcomer Of The Year by the WTA.
On Tuesday Ostapenko is playing Sara Sorribes Tormo in Linz, Austria.