Elina Svitolina says being able to play more freely with fewer expectations has contributed towards her run at the French Open this year.
The 28-year-old sealed her place in the quarter-finals of Roland Garros on Sunday after beating Daria Kasatkina 6-4, 7-6(5). It is a remarkable result for Svitolina who returned to competitive tennis less than two months ago after giving birth to her first child. The French Open is only the sixth WTA-level event she has played this season.
Due to her break from the Tour, Svitolina has to once again climb back up the rankings. At 192nd in the world, she used her protected ranking to gain entry into the French Open main draw this year. A stark contrast to when she last played the event back in 2021 as the fifth seed. However, she believes that there is a silver lining to her current situation.
“I think this is one of the things that I noticed that right now I don’t have that pressure that I used to have before,” Svitolina explained following her win over Kasatkina.
“Of course, I put pressure on myself because I want to win a slam. This is the ultimate goal for me. But definitely not the pressure from outside.’
“I’m going to come into Roland Garros and make the quarterfinal at the beginning of the tournament. I don’t think many people would say, ‘Yeah she’s gonna do it.’”
“That’s why I feel like this really helps me. I feel almost like I’m 17 again coming on the tour fresh. I’m not defending any points.”
It isn’t only her underdog status which is helping Svitolina blossom in Paris, it is also the support she has received from the crowd. She is married to French tennis star Gael Monfils and it appears that the country has adopted her as one of their own.
“Last French player standing,” she joked.
“I’m just thankful for the crowd to be there for me, even though it was some matches I was one set down and coming back to win, they are cheering me on and giving me this push and this hope that I can come back and can win.”
Svitolina now finds herself on an eight-match winning streak on the Tour. A week before Paris she won her 17th WTA title in Strasburg. Then at the clay-court Grand Slam, she scored wins over 26th seed Martina Trevisan, Storm Sanders, Anna Blinkova and Kasatkina.
For some taking a lengthy break from the Tour could hinder their tennis careers but Svitolina believes her maternity break has had the opposite effect on her. She didn’t play a single match for 12 months between April 2022 and April 2023.
“It was a great period of time to be away from tennis, to be completely switched off from it. I really could enjoy my time with my family,” she explained.
“Not talking about the next tournament, the next goal or the next player that I’m gonna play. My mind rested. My body rested in the way that it could with the pregnancy.’
“This period really helped me to refresh. Then when I started training in January, I was extremely motivated. Like almost never before.”
It is the fourth time Svitolina has reached the quarter-finals of the French Open but she is yet to reach the last four of the tournament. In the next round, she could face Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka if she beats Sloane Stephens in her fourth round match.
