Marta Kostyuk achieved a historic milestone for Ukrainian tennis by defeating fellow Ukrainian Elina Svitolina 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 in the first all-Ukrainian Grand Slam quarterfinal of the Open Era at Roland Garros. The victory propelled the 23-year-old into her first Grand Slam semifinal and extended her clay-court winning streak to 17 matches.
Emotional Victory Amid Tragedy
The match carried profound emotional weight, coming just a day after a deadly Russian attack in Ukraine. Speaking after her win, Kostyuk dedicated her achievement to her country. "I want to start with this historic match that we played today with Elina," Kostyuk said. "We had a very difficult night again in Ukraine, especially in Kyiv. So many people are dead. I want to give this match to the Ukrainian people and to their resilience."
Historic Achievement
Seeded 15th in Paris, Kostyuk became the first Ukrainian woman in the Open Era to reach the Roland Garros semifinals. She is also only the third Ukrainian player to make a Grand Slam semifinal, following Elina Svitolina and Dayana Yastremska. The match itself was fiercely contested: Kostyuk won the opening set, Svitolina fought back to level the contest, but the younger player dominated the deciding set, winning 13 of the final 14 points to seal victory.
Respect for Svitolina
Despite ending Svitolina's clay-court winning streak and improving her head-to-head record against her senior compatriot to 2-1, Kostyuk was quick to acknowledge Svitolina's contribution to Ukrainian tennis. "And of course, I want to point out Elina and her incredible impact on Ukrainian tennis, on Ukrainians and on me," she said. "Everyone who's watching, she's an unbelievable fighter. I'm so happy to be in the semifinals, but I want to thank her again for this incredible match."
Kostyuk will now face eighth seed Mirra Andreeva in the semifinals, with both players chasing a place in their first Grand Slam final.
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