Only shortly after her comeback to the WTA Tour, Elina Svitolina stunned the tennis world by winning the 2023 Strasbourg Open.
It's never easy for a mother to return to the professional sports. Despite enjoying probably the most beautiful nine months of their lives, mothers face an uphill battle in regaining the top fitness, something also Svitolina had to go through.
Only in October last year, the Ukrainian welcomed her first child with partner Gael Monfils and soon her quest to return to professional tennis started. She played her first match in Charleston but lost in three sets.
Svitolina admitted that she had goosebumps during her first match, and her first win came soon after that. Entering the 2023 Strasbourg Open, she was one of the names that everyone kept an eye on, and the eyes were kept on the 28-year-old until the final day.
Svitolina would probably admit that she got a bit lucky on her way to the final. After defeating Louisa Chirico, the Ukrainian probably expected to take on the second-seeded Elise Mertens, but she withdrew from the tournament, and so did Svitolina's second-round opponent Erin Routliffe.
The Ukrainian then defeated Varvara Gracheva and Clara Burel to set up a final match with Anna Blinkova, her second Russian opponent at the 2023 Strasbourg Open.
Knowing how close she was to winning the title, Svitolina put on another solid performance. The start of the match was all about Svitolina as Blinkova couldn't find any response to her opponent's two breaks of serve.
The Russian then broke back, but with a string of 10 points, Svitolina broke her opponent once again to win the first set 6-2. She continued to play well, especially on the return, also in the second set.
Although she lost a two-break lead more times than she wanted to, Svitolina managed to win the match 6-2, 6-3 to win the 2023 Strasbourg Open and lift her first title as a mother.
On Monday, she will record one of the craziest jumps in the history of the WTA Rankings. Before the event, Svitolina was ranked 508th and she will find herself back in the Top 200, jumping up to 191st spot, up by 307 positions.
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