Top-ranked Elina Svitolina of Ukraine celebrated her first tournament victory in almost two years on Sunday, winning the WTA 250 Open Capfinances Rouen Métropole.
Svitolina, the No. 1 seed, overcame Serbia`s Olga Danilovic, seeded No. 3, with a score of 6-4, 7-6(8). The intense final match lasted for 1 hour and 58 minutes and was played on Rouen`s indoor clay courts in France.
In a dramatic second set tiebreak, Svitolina fought off two set points when Danilovic was leading 6-4. She then seized her fourth opportunity to win the championship.
This victory improves Svitolina`s impressive record in WTA singles finals. The former World No. 3 has now competed in 22 finals at the tour level throughout her career, winning 18 of them.
Back to winning ways: Svitolina returned from maternity leave in May 2023 and quickly won the Strasbourg title within two months. However, she hadn`t won another title until this week`s Rouen victory.
Since her Strasbourg win, Svitolina had reached only one final, finishing as runner-up in Auckland in January 2024. In Auckland, she was narrowly defeated in three sets by Coco Gauff.
But in her debut at the Rouen tournament, Svitolina played exceptionally well, securing the title without losing a single set throughout the week. Notably, seven of her 18 career titles have been won on clay courts.
More updates to follow…
Rupert Caldwell