Ukraine's Svitolina overwhelms her opponent in Rome: What lies ahead?

Battle for the quarterfinal: Match details Svitolina – Bartunkova

Elina Svitolina and Nikola Bartunkova met for the first time in an official tournament. The Ukrainian, seeded No. 7, showed a high level of play despite strong resistance from her opponent at the start of both sets.

The opening set was nervous, with the players exchanging converted break points. However, at 2–2, Svitolina took control, winning four games in a row. The set ended 6–2 in her favor.

The second set was even more competitive. Up to 3–3, neither player managed to hold serve, with fans witnessing six consecutive breaks. Eventually, Elina’s experience helped her close out the match — 6–3.

Overall, the straight-sets victory allowed the Ukrainian to conserve energy for the next stage of the prestigious WTA 1000 event in Rome.

Who will be Svitolina’s next opponent

Elina Svitolina remains the only Ukrainian player still competing in the quarterfinal stage in Rome.

For Elina, this tournament is special, as she has already won it twice, in 2017 and 2018.

For a place in the semifinals, the Ukrainian No. 1 will face the winner of the match between Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan) and Karolina Pliskova (Czechia).

The upcoming match is expected to be a real challenge, as both potential opponents are among the world’s top players.

Svitolina previously reached the round of 16 after defeating American Hailey Baptiste, while other Ukrainian representatives have already exited the tournament.

The Rome tournament is one of the key preparation events for the Grand Slam Roland Garros, which starts in just a few weeks.

Earlier, it was reported that Ukraine will field a record number of players at Roland Garros.