Elina Svitolina has announced that she will miss ‘a few of her favourite tournaments’ in the coming weeks after opting to take a rest from the Tour to recover both mentally and physically.
The world No.20 confirmed in a statement on Tuesday that she has been dealing with back pain for a long period of time but didn’t elaborate any further about the issue. Svitolina recently suffered a duo of disappointing results on the Tour during the North American hardcourt swing. In Indian Wells she lost her opening match to British qualifier Hariet Dart. Then in Miami she also lost her first match to Heather Watson.
Svitolina says she had been inspired by the crises in her home country to continue playing through the pain. Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24th and Svitolina has vowed to donate prize money she has earned from tournaments to support those affected. She also recently participated in the “Tennis with the Stars” event that saw all profits go towards aiding Ukrainian refugees. The fundraiser also included her husband Gael Monfils and the Bryan brothers.
“It’s been an extremely difficult couple of months for me, not only mentally but also physically. For a quite long time I’ve been struggling with my back. The pain didn’t let me prepare for the tournaments at my best,” Svitolina wrote in a statement posted on social media.
“Meanwhile, observing with unbearable pain in my heart what is happening in my homeland Ukraine and with how much bravery and courage our Ukrainian people are defending our country, this gave me a huge push to continue and fight on court. Now, my body can’t handle it anymore and I need to rest.“
No details were provided about how long Svitolina will spend away from the Tour but she has confirmed her withdrawal from next month’s Billie Jean King Cup, as well as some tournaments in Europe. Although there is no indication yet that she plans to skip the French Open which begins at the end of May.
So far this year Svitolina has recorded a total of five wins against eight losses on the Tour. Her best results were at the Australian Open where she reached the third round, as well as a quarter-final appearance in Monterrey.
