Elina Svitolina captured the biggest title of her career Sunday, winning the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships for her second crown of 2017. The 22-year-old from Ukraine defeated two former No. 1 players en route to the championship – Angelique Kerber, 6-3, 7-6 (3), in the semifinals and Caroline Wozniacki, 6-4, 6-2, in the final.
Here’s a little more info about this rising women's star:
The Elina Svitolina File
Age: 22
Height: 5-9
Residence: Kharkiv, Ukraine
Current Rank: 10
Career-High Rank: 10 (February 2017)
Best US Open Finish: 3R (2015, 2016)
The Baseline
- Svitolina became the first Ukrainian player to reach the world's Top 10 after securing the title in Dubai. She is currently riding a 12-match winning streak after winning the Taiwan Open the week of Jan. 30 and notching back-to-back Fed Cup wins in Ukraine's first-round World Group II tie against Australia the following weekend.
- Svitolina improved her record to 2-0 over Wozniacki with her win in the Dubai final, having also defeated the Dane in a three-set thriller, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (1), at the Miami Open last year. Svitolina earned her first victory over a Top 10 player against Petra Kvitová in the round of 16 in Cincinnati in 2014. More recently, she shocked world No. 1 Serena Williams in the third round of the 2016 Rio Olympics and beat then-world No. 1 Kerber in the quarterfinals in Brisbane in January.
- Svitolina has won six WTA titles in her young career. In addition to her championship runs in Dubai and Taiwan this year, she captured titles in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, last year; Marrakech, Morocco, in 2015; Baku, Azerbaijan, in both 2013 and 2014; and Pune, India, in 2012. Svitolina worked with Hall of Famer and former world No. 1 Justine Henin for much of 2016, appointing her as a special consultant on her team.
- Before turning pro in 2010, Svitolina climbed to No. 1 in the ITF World Junior Rankings. Among her junior career highlights, she won the girls' singles title at the 2010 French Open at the age of 15 and also advanced to the Wimbledon girls' final in 2012, falling to Eugenie Bouchard in her last tournament as a junior.
- On her official website, Svitolina called the US Open her favorite tournament because she is "in love with New York."
They Said It!
“I think matches like this, a final, where you have so much pressure, when you have this kind of emotions – you just want to win so badly and achieve your goals, your dreams. This desire, this feeling is what makes you go crazy and work really hard. That's what I love about tennis. There’s always these small achievements that you have, and it always drives you to go for more and work harder.”
– Svitolina, to wtatennis.com, after winning the Dubai title, when asked what she enjoys most about being a pro tennis player
