'It's her best quality': Kostyuk lauds Svitolina's grit as motivation in comeback

Marta Kostyuk and Elina Svitolina made it a strong day on Wednesday for the top two Ukranian players on the WTA Tour. 

Kostyuk, the top seed in the Open Capfinances Metropole in Rouen, France, notched a gritty 2-6, 6-2, 6-1 comeback win over Caty McNally. It certainly wasn't an easy outing for Kostyuk, but throughout the match, she thought of Svitolina's fight and determination as intrinsic motivation during difficult moments in the match. 

Svitolina, who's playing at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix 500 event in Stuttgart this week, won the 250 title in Rouen in 2025. 

"It’s nice to be back after Elina winning here also being the first seed," Kostyuk said on court. "When I was in difficult moments in the matches I was thinking about her and how she fights always. It’s her best quality I think. I wanted to bring out the best as well."

Kostyuk fought back after a dominant first set by McNally. In the final two sets, Kostyuk notched five of her six breaks, winning 12 of the final 15 games.

Over in neighboring Germany, Svitolina wasted no time, earning a 6-1, 6-0 win over Eva Lys in 54 minutes. Both players are through to the semifinals of their respectively tournaments. Kostyuk will face Tatjana Maria for a spot in the Rouen final, while Svitolina encounters Karolina Muchova in Stuttgart.

"Actually I made a joke, we exchanged a few messages on Instagram about that, because they also told her that I was No. 1 seed last year, I won the tournament, and now it's up for her," Svitolina joked Friday after her semifinal win over Noskova. "I told her, just low expectations for you there.

"She's a great player, and we practice quite a bit when we are playing for our country. She's really representing Ukraine in a decent way. It's great to have a bunch of young players coming up. I feel like it keeps me on my toes."