Elina Svitolina

Elina Svitolina: the hard worker from Ukraine

Born in September 1994 in the Ukrainian metropolis of Odessa, Elina Svitolina first came into contact with tennis at age five thanks to her sports-loving family. At the age of twelve, businessman Yuriy Sapronov saw Svitolina play at a junior tournament and decided to support her career. After a few years as a junior on the lower levels of the ITF Women's Circuit and the WTA Challenger Series, Svitolina broke into the world's top 50 in 2013, and things kept moving upward for her in the years that followed.

Since 2015 she has ranked among the world's top 20 players, and since 2017 she has been a fixture in the top ten, counted among the wider circle of favorites at every major tournament. Off the court, Elina Svitolina runs a nutrition blog called “The ES Club,” where she posts recipes centered on healthy, balanced eating. She has also been in a relationship with French tennis pro Gael Monfils since 2019, and the two got engaged in April 2021.

From Junior Grand Slam Champion to the Absolute Top of the World

The biggest success of Elina Svitolina's junior career was winning the French Open girls' singles title in 2012. In the final, she defeated Tunisia's Ons Jabeur. Between 2011 and 2013, she also picked up seven singles titles at ITF and Challenger level, one or two tiers below the WTA World Tour. Her first title on the World Tour followed in 2013 in the Azerbaijani capital, Baku. The following year, she beat a top-ten player for the first time in her professional career: Czech player Petra Kvitova.

She has also picked up six wins over a world No. 1: three against Angelique Kerber, two against Simona Halep, and one against Serena Williams. By now she has claimed 15 titles on tour. These numerous successes played a major part in Svitolina cracking the top ten for the first time in 2017. Her results at the four Grand Slams are also impressive: in 2019 she reached the semifinals at both Wimbledon and the US Open. A title, however, has eluded her so far.

The Recipe for Success: Efficiency and Defense

Elina Svitolina is a defensive baseline player with a remarkably complete game. Her greatest strengths are her mobility, footwork, speed, stamina, and anticipation, and she aims to get as many balls back as possible in order to draw unforced errors out of her more aggressive opponents. The groundstrokes of this right-hander are very consistent and are sent across the net at a reduced pace.

Even so, Elina Svitolina is also capable of hitting both her forehand and her two-handed backhand with plenty of power when the opportunity arises. Her backhand is her stronger side, especially down the line and on the run, though both her forehand and backhand can penetrate deep into the court. Elina Svitolina's exceptional mobility allows her to execute her defensive style of play successfully. She also manages to handle difficult shots on the run with apparent ease.

The Danger for Her Opponents Lies in the Counterattack

Svitolina has the ability to turn defense into attack whenever she spots the chance. The Ukrainian also manages to hit low-risk winners from defensive positions, which regularly push her opponents to the brink of despair. The only known weakness in Svitolina's game on the WTA Tour is her volley, which is why she rarely takes the initiative to move forward to the net herself.

Nevertheless, she has excellent reflexes that help her hold her own at the net as well. When opponents try to draw her forward with a drop shot, it is often the Ukrainian who still wins the point, since her outstanding speed and anticipation let her reach short balls early and then pass her opponents.

The Highlights of Elina Svitolina's Career So Far

Among Svitolina's many successful years on the women's tour, the 2017 season stands out as one of her most triumphant. That year, the Ukrainian made her breakthrough with five tournament titles, in Taipei, Dubai, Istanbul, Rome, and Toronto. The title in Toronto is especially memorable, as she knocked out four top-ten players along the way, including Simona Halep and Garbiñe Muguruza. She has counted among the absolute elite of women's tennis ever since.

In 2017, Elina Svitolina also qualified for the WTA Finals for the first time, becoming the first Ukrainian ever to do so. In September 2017, she reached her career-high ranking of world No. 3. Another highlight of Svitolina's career came in 2018 at the WTA Finals. As in the previous year, she took part in the season finale on the women's tour. This time she entered the tournament seeded sixth and beat the crème de la crème of tennis on her way to the final. In the final, she got the better of American Sloane Stephens, celebrating the biggest success of her career to date.

The Ukrainian Tennis Star's Complete Kit at the Tennis-Point Online Shop

In our online shop you'll find a huge selection of the products Elina Svitolina also uses every day to wear down her opponents' patience with long, intense rallies. To deliver her best performance on court, the Ukrainian relies on a racket from WILSON. She also relies on Wilson for her tennis bag and overgrips. For optimal control on her shots, Svitolina uses strings from Luxilon. At every event on the women's tour, Elina Svitolina wears Nike outfits. And to get the best out of herself on every surface, she also wears tennis shoes from Nike.