In a match that electrified Wimbledon’s Centre Court, new mother Elina Svitolina upset the world’s number-one and first-seeded Iga Swiatek in three sets (7-5, 6-7, 6-2) to reach her third semifinal at a major tournament.
The match came a mere two days after Svitolina’s triumph over Victoria Azarenka, which Svitolina called “the second happiest moment of my life”—but her route to the semifinals is paved with victories over Grand Slam champions: Venus Williams in the first round, Sofia Kenin in the third round, Azarenka in the round of 16, and now Swiatek in the quarters. (It’s also her seventh win over a number-one-ranked player.)
Svitolina, who had a daughter last year with her husband, French tennis star Gael Monfils, only returned to the tour in April and is currently ranked 76th. She’s been a fierce and outspoken advocate of Ukraine in many ways—but has received some unwanted attention for her refusal to shake the hands, after the conclusion of her matches, with players from Russia or Belarus. (Enough fans have been confused by the gesture—sometimes thinking it a personal snub either from Svitolina or toward Svitolina by the other player—that the WTA (the governing body of the women’s tour) felt obliged to issue a statement noting that “Due to the ongoing reprehensible war, the WTA respects the position of the Ukrainian athletes in foregoing the tradition of shaking opponents’ hands [from Russia and Belarus] at the end of a match, as this is a personal decision.”
After the match, Svitolina paid tribute to Swiatek, with whom she’s close (the two embraced at the net after match point). “Iga is not only a great champion, she’s also an unbelievable person—she was one of the first ones to help Ukrainian people.”
Next up: On Thursday, Svitolina will play Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic, who earlier today upset fourth-seeded American Jessica Pegula. But before that?
“First of all, I’m gonna have a beer, probably,” Svitolina told the crowd after her match.
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