Elina SVITOLINA: “I am a mother now. I’m not top ten or top twenty players.”

Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina (WTA 191) shared his thoughts after a successful start at the French Open 2023:

– Elina, you got a great first round win and you’re in great shape after your victory in Strasbourg. How excited are you to be back at the Grand Slam?

– Yes, because I won the championship, I am very happy to be back. Winning the tournament is the Major’s best preparation and cannot be. I showed excellent tennis in Strasbourg and of course I played a good game today as well. A very high quality and definite win.

– Do you feel any different than when you took a break a year ago? Is there anything you do particularly differently right now, or do you feel like you’ve never left the Tour?

Well, almost everything is different. First, I have a different team now. Now I am a mother. I’m not one of the top ten or the twenty, I’m outside the top 100, somewhere in the top 200 after Strasbourg. I would also say less pressure because now I just get points, get back to that level, get back to the competition. Therefore, for me everything is somehow old and new. It’s a mix of different emotions but right now I want to enjoy every opportunity in every tournament. Just play good tennis. Try to have fun, then we’ll see how it goes.

– I want to ask about your physical condition, how do you feel compared to when you were at the top of your game?

“I feel great now. I think I am in good physical shape. I worked hard at the gym with my team to prepare really well physically. That’s what I focused on. I feel as strong as ever. Maybe even stronger. I get better every game because I feel like I can do the job off the court. Also psychologically, because morale also affects your physical condition. We can see the result that I played well and most importantly I am satisfied with the level I am showing right now. This is the foundation that I plan to develop further.

– Elina, you changed your visor at the request of the referee before the match started. What was the problem?

– Although I played in Strasbourg, I was told that you cannot play in Grand Slam tournaments with the sponsor’s text in the viewfinder. My manager will check to see if it’s okay to tamper with the writing on the dress. I was very surprised of course.

– Have you used the app introduced by the organizers of Roland Garros this year to protect players from hate speech on social networks? Marta Kostyuk said that she deleted some social networks from her phone due to the rain of criticism following her statements about sports and war the previous day.

– I haven’t used this app yet because after Strasbourg I went to training right away and then there was the match. I heard they want to limit players from hate with this app. A very important and necessary application. Many people take hate in their direction to heart. I can shield myself from it or take it as motivation, but there are enough thin-skinned players. It will definitely be useful for them.