Elina Svitolina has reclaimed her title in Rome, coming out on top against Coco Gauff in the Italian Open final.
Svitolina had anticipated a tough contest with Gauff, and the match didn’t disappoint. It was tightly contested from start to finish.
After nearly three hours on court, Svitolina emerged with a 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-2 victory over Gauff.
The win capped off an impressive run for the Ukrainian, who had also taken down Elena Rybakina and Iga Swiatek on her way to the title.
Now up to 20 WTA titles in her career, Svitolina has also joined elite company by matching a rare achievement shared by just two legends of the game.
Svitolina’s win in Rome also places her alongside Kim Clijsters and Victoria Azarenka as the only mothers to capture a WTA 1000 title since returning to the sport.
The Italian Open’s social media channels highlighted the milestone, which is another nod to how remarkable her comeback has been.
It’s a tournament she knows well, having previously won in back-to-back years in 2017 and 2018, which adds an extra layer of history to this latest victory.
She is now the oldest player to win three or more titles at a single Tier 1/WTA 1000 event, moving past Serena Williams’ previous mark set in Miami. It’s another accolade for a player who continues to build on an already impressive career.
But her list of accolades doesn’t end there. It’s been an outstanding stretch for Ukrainian tennis as a whole this season.
Earlier this month, her compatriot Marta Kostyuk won the Madrid Open, having also emerged victorious in Rouen just before that.
Kostyuk has 14 WTA titles to her name but is still a long way behind Svitolina, who has become the first Ukrainian player to claim 20 WTA singles titles in the Open Era.
The timing of her latest victory couldn’t be better, with Roland Garros just around the corner later this month. And with eight wins and no defeats in clay-court finals, Svitolina heads into Paris full of confidence.
Read more:
