Andy Murray
highlighted
Elina Svitolina's achievements post-pregnancy return.
The
Ukrainian tennis player had an impressive comeback to the WTA tour this year.
Svitolina took a break after announcing her pregnancy and the subsequent birth
of her daughter with tennis player Gael Monfils.
Svitolina
returned in April when she was ranked world No. 1344 and initially participated
in lower-level tournaments. Although she faced early exits in Madrid and the
Rome Open, she claimed the title at the WTA 250 Estrasburgo Open just before
Roland Garros.
In the
following weeks, she reached the quarterfinals at the French Open and the
semifinals at Wimbledon, allowing her to return to the top 30 rankings just
eight weeks after being outside the top 1000.
Former
world No. 1 Andy Murray spoke about Svitolina in an interview during the DC
Open, where she already reached the quarterfinals by defeating Victoria
Azarenka and Daria Kasatkina. Murray praised Svitolina as an example after her
incredible return to the WTA tour.
“I'm amazed
how well & how quickly Svitolina came back playing at such a good level so
soon after having a kid is amazing. Having examples like that, if the players
want to do it, will encourage more players to take breaks in their careers,”
Murray said.
Svitolina
has not only progressed in the major tournaments but also defeated strong
opponents along the way. In the past two months, she has secured victories over
Kasatkina and Azarenka twice each. Additionally, she has defeated Elise
Mertens, Sofia Kenin, and the world No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals of
Wimbledon.
Meanwhile, Murray
is currently competing in the ATP 500 Dallas Open, where he entered as the 15th
seed and advanced to the second round after defeating the young local player
Brandon Nakashima in the first round.
His next
match will be a challenging encounter against the first seed and local player
Taylor Fritz, who defeated Zachary Svajda in the first round.
