Elina Svitolina’s Wimbledon storybook came to a painful end on Thursday when she lost her semifinal match against Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic in straight sets.
Svitolina, a new mom from Ukraine who has become a symbol of defiance since the Russian invasion in February 2022 — especially during her runs at the French Open and Wimbledon — fell to Vondrousova, 6-3, 6-3, on an error-filled afternoon under the roof at Center Court.
For ten days Svitolina, who needed a wild card to enter the tournament, had played tennis with a combination of freedom and rebelliousness that thrilled the British public, especially during her victory over Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in the fourth round, when she was victorious. in a final set tiebreak after Azarenka appeared to have all but won the match. Two days later, Svitolina defeated Iga Swiatek of Poland, the world No. 1 and four-time Grand Slam champion in another thrilling and emotional three-set triumph.
She shared how the war and new motherhood had changed her and her approach to tennis, and made her even better because she had a new perspective on the sport.
“I don’t view difficult situations as a disaster,” she said. “There are worse things in life. I’m just calmer.”
But then she came across Vondrousova, a talented and tricky left-handed player who may not come close to the résumés of Swiatek and Azarenka – or Sofia Kenin or Venus Williams, two of Svitolina’s other victims at this tournament – but she played like she did .
Vondrousova, who was world No. 1 as a junior and reached the French Open final in 2019, is developing a habit of playing the spoiler. At the Tokyo Olympics, she knocked out Japan’s Naomi Osaka, the national hero and international star who lit the Olympic torch at the opening ceremony, and went on to win the silver medal.