The ‘French’ Elina Svitolina shines once again in Paris

There are no more French representatives at the individual tables, the local public adopted Ukrainian elina Svitolina as her favorite tennis player in the tournament Roland Garros. His marriage to the French idol Gael Monfils and his story of overcoming the war unleashed on his country by Russia and her new motherhood has put Svitolina back on the Parisian showcase.

After giving birth to her first daughter in October 2022, Skythe Ukrainian tennis player reappeared in April, a year after his last tournament, in March 2022, when he decided to park tennis because he was “tired of thinking and grief” over the war started by Russia and his desire to be a mother.

He gradually reflected the rhythm of the competition and his tournament title before Roland Garros, in Strasbourg, is already an indicator that Svitolina is on her way to regaining her previous level. Former world No. 3, Elina is currently at No. 192 in the ranking and entered the quarterfinals of Roland Garros for the fourth time this Sunday (2015, 2017, 2020, 2023) after winning again in the world top-10, the Russian. Daria Kasatkina (9th), by 6-4 and 7-6 (5).

Predictably, the two players did not shake hands at the end of the match: Kasatkina went straight to greet the chair umpire before greeting Elina from afar afterwards. Daria has repeatedly opposed the Russian-led war in Ukraine and accepts the fact that Ukrainian players do not congratulate Russian and Belarusian players.

enlarge 💜@ElinaSvitolina securing his place in the quarterfinals, matching his best result in Paris! #Roland Garros pic.twitter.com/FvnMcoMzNH

— wta (@WTA) June 4, 2023

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In the previous round, Svitolina also chose not to shake hands Anna Blinkova and just stuck the thumb up in his direction.

“I am Ukrainian and I do everything I can to support those who are on the front lines and fighting for our country and our land. What the Russians are doing to our country is terrible. I also play to give the those moments of joy for the Ukrainians, children who played tennis before the war and no longer have this opportunity,” said Svitolina.

“I feel anger, sadness and pain to see all this. Every time I step on the court I will give 100% to do something for my country. There is a flag next to my name, so I fight my country”, added the tennis player, who became even more competitive after becoming a mother.

“I knew when I was pregnant that I would come back because I wanted to do it for myself. I have goals to achieve before retiring. I myself was inspired by another woman who gave birth and returned to the sport. Of course, it requires a lot effort” explained Elina.

Svitolina, 28, added 17 WTA titlesthe most important Masters of 2018. At this Roland Garros he has the opportunity to match his best result with a grand slamthe semifinals of Wimbledon and the US Open 2019. In his palmares also shines the Olympic bronze conquered in Tokyo 2021 Games.