Elina Svitolina, who won arguably the biggest hard court tournament of her career last at last year’s Rogers Cup, called that victory “unbelievable” and said she is excited to defend her title.
Speaking to the WTA’s official website, the world No. 5 said she has fond recollections of her 2017 tournament in Toronto, where she cruised past Caroline Wozniacki 6-4, 6-0 for her third Premier 5 title of the season.
“It was unbelievable. I had so many great memories from that tournament, of touch matches from the first round,” Svitolina said. “I had a very, very tough draw. I was proud of myself the way I handled the pressure and all the matches to win the tournament. It was very special.”
Indeed, the Ukrainian faced a string of top opponents a year ago, defeating Daria Kasatkina, Venus Williams and Garbiñe Muguruza before cruising past Simona Halep and Wozniacki. The No. 5 seed faces a slightly easier road this year, though a possible rematch with Wozniacki awaits in the quarterfinals. She could, however, face a tricky opening test following her opening round bye against Mihaela Buzarnescu, who won her maiden title in San Jose last week.
The 23-year-old Ukrainian, however, has had relatively little success in Montreal. She lost in the third round two years ago, her only appearance in Quebec.
Still, Svitolina said she is eager to return to hard courts after the brief swing on grass, where she has struggled to post strong results. She lost to Tatjana Maria in the first round at Wimbledon and was just 2-2 on grass. Those two match wins are equal to the two titles she has won on hard courts in 2018.
“It’s definitely something nice that you’re looking forward to,” she said of the surface change. “I didn’t really go on holiday. I was trying to be really focused … on the second part of the year.
“For me, it’s really important to start strong without any injuries, just give myself the best chance to play well.”
