- Svitolina stages remarkable comeback to reach Wimbledon semifinals
- Svitolina’s resilience and experience lead her to victory over Swiatek
- Svitolina’s revival continues as she excels on the biggest stages
Nearly two hours into her second quarterfinal in as many grand slam tournaments since returning from maternity leave, Elina Svitolina performed flawlessly. Faced with the difficulty of containing the greatest player in the world, Svitolina worked Iga Swiatek like a true veteran, applying pressure in crucial moments and committing no errors. However, with Svitolina leading 4-1 in the second set tie-break, Swiatek executed a remarkable comeback.
Still, Svitolina never panicked. Over the span of her 13-year career, she has won nearly 450 matches and defeated the era’s top players. Nothing in the world is more familiar to her than battling through a tennis match with grit and determination, and she utilized this knowledge to instantaneously recover: After 41 minutes, Svitolina accomplished one of the greatest victories of her career by defeating Swiatek, the top seed, 7-5, 6-7 (5), 6-2 to return to the Wimbledon semifinals and equal her best performance at a grand slam tournament.
The duo advanced to the quarterfinals after dominating one of the year’s most exciting tennis days.
In her fourth-round match against the No. 14 seed Belinda Bencic, Swiatek appeared to have reached a turning point in her grass-court evolution after surviving two match points on her serve.
As Swiatek completed her spectacular three-set victory on Centre Court, Svitolina was in the midst of a fierce battle of her own. After brutal combat with Victoria Azarenka, the Ukrainian overcame a 4-7 deficit in the third-set tie-break to clinch the match with an ace.
As they stepped onto the court, however, the lingering question was whether Svitoliina’s defensive-first counterpunching style would be enough to trouble Swiatek, who tends to struggle against larger ball-strikers who can effectively rush her. While Swiatek promptly asserted herself, leading by a break for the majority of the first set, she never appeared at ease. As her errors accumulated, she labored to maintain control of her leaky forehand. Svitolina simply attempted to maintain her composure, offering forehands to Swiatek and minimizing her errors.
Svitolina seized upon her opponent when she perceived her to be vulnerable. She moved swiftly closer to the baseline, attacking returns and searching for opportunities to unleash her forehand. The No. 1 seed cracked for the first time under duress. From a 5-3 lead, Swiatek lost the final four games of the first set, mainly due to a deluge of errant forehands, and concluded the set with a disastrous backhand volley error. The roof was closed following the performance as rain began to fall.
Early in the second set, Swiatek led by a break, but this potential turning point proved to be a mirage.
With Svitolina continually challenging Swiatek’s shot tolerance and refusing to miss, Swiatek struggled to limit her errors as her forehand grew increasingly loose. As Swiatek hung on to force a tie-break, Svitolina breezed through the early phases, launching an ace to take a 4-1 lead.
Swiatek responded to the strain with a remarkable display of mental fortitude when the match appeared to be slipping away for the second time in two days. In the final six points of the tie-break, Swiatek hit five winners or point-ending strokes, forcing a third set.
After such a significant missed opportunity, many players would have quit, but Svitolina shook off her disappointment immediately. From the very first point of the set, she advanced to the baseline with maximum effort. She saved her finest tennis performance for the decisive set, flying around the court as she counterpunched and gathered all short balls. In the third set, Svitolina broke serve twice before serving out a facile victory.
With the win, this remarkable revival continues. Her return to professional tennis following the birth of her daughter Ska in October has been remarkable for numerous reasons.
When she was a top-three player in the world, Svitolina was unable to play with the same degree of abandon that she does now.
Svitolina, formerly known for her propensity to struggle at grand slam tournaments despite amassing WTA 1000 titles against the same players, now excels on the largest stages. As one of her country’s greatest international athletes during a time of conflict, every decision she makes on the court is imbued with even greater significance, despite her return from a break from the hamster wheel of professional tennis. Svitolina, who received a wild card into the tournament, will now face Marketa Vondrousova to reach her first grand slam final.
