Ukraine's top seed Elina Svitolina (12th in the world), who defeated “neutral” Russian Diana Schneider in the 3rd round of the Melbourne Open, advanced to the quarterfinals of the first year of the Australian Open Grand Slam tournament with a total prize pool of $77 million, repeating her best result in the tournament.
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In the round of 16 match, the bronze medalist of the 2020 Olympics defeated another “neutral”, the vice-champion of the 2024 Games in doubles, the first racket of the aggressor country, 18-year-old Mirra Andreeva (7th) – 6:2, 6:4. The ninth consecutive victory of the Ukrainian in 2026!
The fourth-ever appearance in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open brought Svitolina 430 rating points and $517,500 in “dirty” money. Elina will challenge for a place in the semifinals in a duel with the third-ranked player in the world, 21-year-old American Coco Gauff, who proved to be stronger than the Czech Karolina Muchova (19th) – 6:1, 3:6, 6:3.
“I am very, very happy with today's performance,” said Elina Svitolina . “I had to really fight and fight until the last game. The match was extremely nerve-wracking, and I am very happy with how I was able to control myself and cope with the pressure. I expected a tough battle and a lot of long games. I tried to work my feet really well, be as focused as possible, and find small gaps in her game and try to exploit them.”
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Gael and I are definitely going to have a family FaceTime with our daughter Skye right now. Luckily, it's daytime in Europe, so we can do that and enjoy the moment together.
“She knows we play tennis and that it's our job, but she thinks all parents play tennis professionally. That's nice, of course. I think one day she'll become an athlete herself – we'll see how she does. Maybe in another sport. I think three tennis players in a family is too much.”
Recall that the 31-year-old from Odessa previously made it to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in 2018, 2019, and 2025.
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We should add that Svitolina remains the only Ukrainian woman to continue her singles career at the Australian Open. Unfortunately, Dayana Yastremska (27th), Marta Kostyuk (20th), who tore a ligament in her leg, Oleksandra Oliynikova (90th), Yulia Starodubtseva (110th) and Angelina Kalinina (178th) all retired in the first round, earning $103,500 each in “dirty” money.
Previously, “FACTS” reported that Svitolina defeated Spaniard Buksha at the start of the Australian Open.
Photo by Jimmie48
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