Tears ran down Elina Svitolina‘s face as she left the court at Margaret Court Arena on Monday.
She had to retire from her Australian Open fourth-round match against Linda Noskova after just three games because of what she later described as a back spasm, and her latest potential dream run at a major was over.
But despite the obvious disappointment from her own result, the 29-year-old couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride soon after as her fellow Ukrainian Dayana Yastremska defeated Victoria Azarenka to advance to the quarterfinals. Their fellow countrywoman Marta Kostyuk had already reached the round on Sunday with a win over Maria Timofeeva, marking the first time two Ukrainian women have reached the final eight at a major in history.
“It’s great for Ukrainian tennis,” Svitolina told reporters Monday. “It’s great for the upcoming generation as well, especially now these days when Ukraine in such a tough time. It’s good that we have strong Ukrainian girls; hopefully we can continue to build on this.”
There had been seven Ukrainian women in the main draw in Melbourne — another record Svitolina had pointed out multiple times throughout her run at the tournament — and she previously said they all were “pushing each other.” Kostyuk, 21, said she and…
