Unseeded Ukrainian Elina Svitolina stuns world No. 1 Iga Świątek to reach Wimbledon semifinals
By Matias Grez, CNN
(CNN) — Unseeded Ukrainian Elina Svitolina stunned world No. 1 Iga Świątek on Tuesday, winning 7-5 6-7 6-2 in a Centre Court classic to reach the Wimbledon semifinals.
Svitolina only returned to tennis three months ago following the birth of her daughter, Skaï Monfils, in October and, currently ranked world No. 76, was given a wildcard to compete at this year’s Wimbledon.
Her incredible run at SW19 now includes wins over four grand slam champions – Venus Williams, Sofia Kenin, Victoria Azarenka and Świątek – and equals her career best performance in a grand slam, matching her semifinal appearances at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2019.
“I don’t know what is happening right now in my head, but just I’m really, really happy that I’ve got this chance to play here again and for playing this great match in a great atmosphere. It was really an unbelievable feeling for me,” Svitolina said in her on-court interview.
“It wasn’t easy to play against Iga today; obviously, she’s No. 1, but today was an unbelievable match and I’m really happy I could win this one.
“Iga is a great player but also a great person, she was one of the first ones that really helped Ukrainian people and it was a huge help. So for sure, it’s not easy to play against someone that you share a lot of good moments with and I think for her it was not easy.
“In the end, just really proud of the effort I made today and really thank you so much for cheering for me all the way.”
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
