Swiatek Calls for More Support for Ukrainian Players

Iga Swiatek of Poland celebrates defeating Emma Raducanu of Great Britain during BNP Paribas Open on March 14, 2023 in Indian Wells, California. (Getty Images/AFP)
Iga Swiatek of Poland celebrates defeating Emma Raducanu of Great Britain during BNP Paribas Open on March 14, 2023 in Indian Wells, California. (Getty Images/AFP)
TT
20

Swiatek Calls for More Support for Ukrainian Players

Iga Swiatek of Poland celebrates defeating Emma Raducanu of Great Britain during BNP Paribas Open on March 14, 2023 in Indian Wells, California. (Getty Images/AFP)
Iga Swiatek of Poland celebrates defeating Emma Raducanu of Great Britain during BNP Paribas Open on March 14, 2023 in Indian Wells, California. (Getty Images/AFP)

World number one Iga Swiatek has called for more support to be offered to Ukrainian players on the women's tour after Lesia Tsurenko said she withdrew from her match against Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka at Indian Wells due to a panic attack.

Tsurenko said the attack was triggered by a chat she had with WTA Chief Executive Steve Simon about tennis's response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Belarus has been a key staging ground for what Moscow calls a "special military operation".

Poland's Swiatek, who wears a Ukrainian flag on her cap during matches, has previously condemned Russia's invasion and said the action taken by the tennis leadership had not been enough.

"I totally understand why she withdrew, because honestly I respect Ukrainian girls so much. If a bomb landed in my country or if my home was destroyed, I don't know if I could handle that and compete," Swiatek said.

"You have to really mentally be there to compete every week. So I get that she wasn't ready to do that.

"I feel more should be done to help Ukrainian players because everything we discuss in tennis is about Belarusian and Russian players, if they should be allowed, what's going on with them.

"I don't think that's right, because we should focus more on helping Ukrainian players and providing them everything they need because they basically have to take care of all their families, and there's a lot of baggage on their shoulders."

Swiatek had also criticised Anastasia Potapova after she sparked outrage by wearing a T-shirt of Russian football team Spartak Moscow before her match against Jessica Pegula.

Swiatek said such situations could have easily been avoided.

"At the beginning we didn't have proper leadership to guide us through all of that," Swiatek said. "There's a lot of tension in the locker room that obviously is going to be there because there's a war.

"But maybe it should be a little bit less if WTA put some action at the beginning to explain to everybody what's right and what's not."



Svitolina Rallies to Reach Australian Open Quarterfinals for 3rd Time

Ukraine's Elina Svitolina celebrates her first set against Russia's Veronika Kudermetova during their women's singles match on day nine of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 20, 2025. (Photo by Martin KEEP / AFP)
Ukraine's Elina Svitolina celebrates her first set against Russia's Veronika Kudermetova during their women's singles match on day nine of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 20, 2025. (Photo by Martin KEEP / AFP)
TT
20

Svitolina Rallies to Reach Australian Open Quarterfinals for 3rd Time

Ukraine's Elina Svitolina celebrates her first set against Russia's Veronika Kudermetova during their women's singles match on day nine of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 20, 2025. (Photo by Martin KEEP / AFP)
Ukraine's Elina Svitolina celebrates her first set against Russia's Veronika Kudermetova during their women's singles match on day nine of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 20, 2025. (Photo by Martin KEEP / AFP)

Elina Svitolina was 4-1 down before she went on a roll and took 11 of the next 12 games in a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Veronika Kudermetova on Monday to reach the Australian Open quarterfinals for the third time.
The 30-year-old Ukrainian is into the last eight at a Grand Slam for the 12th time and will next play No. 19 Madison Keys, who had a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 win over Elena Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion and 2023 Australian Open runner-up, The Associated Press reported.
Keys has twice reached the semifinals in Australia, in 2015 and 2022, and entered the season's first major with a title in Adelaide earlier this month.
Svitolina is back in the quarterfinals in Australia for the first time since 2019.
“Feels like a lifetime ago,” Svitolina said. Since then, she has married French player Gael Monfils in 2021 and the pair had a daughter, Skai, in 2022. “Many things happened and I’m really pleased with the performance throughout the tournament. Really enjoying this win today.”
After dropping two early service games to Kudermetova, she said her only goal “was just trying to fight.”
“It’s the only thing I can do when things are not going your way, put your head down and get back to work,” she said. “Really happy I could come (back) into the match and then win in straight sets.”
In a message written on a TV camera lens after the match, the No. 28-seeded Svitolina wrote “The Spirit of Ukraine” and drew a heart shape.
Svitolina, the No. 28 seed, wore a red dress, red shoes and a red cap for the match. People in the crowd waved the yellow and blue Ukraine flag.
Kudermetova took a medical timeout for on-court treatment on her abdomen after falling behind 5-4 the first set.
She left the court for treatment after losing the first set. Kudermetova saved a breakpoint and held for 1-1 in the second set, following up a forehand winner down the line with a loud roar.
That was the end of her celebrating.
It wasn’t just power and pace from Svitolina that was the difference between the pair. After bringing Kudermetova to the net with a drop shot and then lobbing over her to start the next game, Svitolina punched the air.
There was no handshake at the net with Kudermeotva, a 27-year-old from Russia, but no animosity, either.
Svitolina’s husband, Monfils, was playing later Monday against No. 21 seed Ben Shelton on Margaret Court Arena. The 38-year-old Frenchman reached the fourth round with an upset over fourth-seeded Taylor Fritz, the US Open runner-up last year.
Other quarterfinalists will be decided when defending champion Jannik Sinner and No. 13 seed Holger Rune meet in an afternoon match and five-time major winner Iga Swiatek takes on Eva Lys, the lucky loser from qualifying, in a night match.