Svitolina: It doesn’t matter to me who is on the other half of the court, my priority is to focus on my game

The first racket of Ukraine Elina Svitolina commented on the upcoming start of the Australian Open 2024 and spoke about her full recovery from injury.

“I am now 100% recovered. The tournament in Auckland was very difficult, but I am glad that I was able to play at a very high level. I came across such strong opponents, but I was able to not only play with them, but also win. And this is a very big step forward for me, because the team and I were a little worried about my well-being and the condition of my leg. Still, I didn’t play two months after the US Open and didn’t know how my leg would react to the load. Therefore, I am very glad that from my first tournament I showed such a high level of tennis.”

“This is a significant step for me and my fitness. Now it’s important to prioritize my health every day so that I have the opportunity to play a lot of tournaments, because the important competitions are both 500 series tournaments and 1000 series tournaments – there are a lot of them. You have to be in such a powerful shape, so for me my physical condition is a priority. So I’m very glad that everything worked out this way from the very beginning, that I feel good and now I’m preparing for my first match at AO on Monday.”

“This is the first time I’ve heard my rival’s last name. [Тайлы Престон], but that’s okay because she’s young and just now starting to play at the highest level. But the coach and I had already done this work before the match: we watched her matches on YouTube, how she played in Adelaide, in Kuyong. Therefore, we understand how she plays and what to expect from her. But for me now the main thing is to physically feel 100% and focus on my game, on the points that we worked on in the off-season. For me, it doesn’t matter who is on the other half of the court, my priority is to focus on what I can control myself and work on my game. It doesn’t matter if it’s a match or a training session, I want to prepare every time and play the best I can, working on my game every day.”

Let us remind you that the first racket of Ukraine took a break from performances after leaving the US Open 2023 in the third round. It was reported that Svitolina had problems with her foot, which is why she performed at the event with an untreated injury.

At the first start of the season, Elina made it to the WTA 250 finals in Auckland, New Zealand. Ahead of Svitolina is the start in the main draw of the Australian Open 2024.