Svitolina outlasts vintage Venus in thrilling contest
● American’s play evokes her glory days but she loses in two tight sets
Fifth seed Elina Svitolina is sfaely through to the last 32 at the US Open, but she had to fight all the way in a tough second-round contest with Venus Williams before eventually taking the contest 6-4, 6-4 on her sixth match point after an hour and 51 minutes.
It was a third win in a row for the Ukrainian against the American veteran, and the second time this year that the pair had met in the first week of a major following their encounter at Roland Garros. At 39 Williams often gives the impression of being a completely spent force, but last night she produced some vintage moments that evoked memories of the prowess that brought her two titles at Flushing Meadows as well as five Wimbledon championships in the opening decade of the century.
But, while Williams enjoyed those isolated moments of mastery, Svitolina had the upper hand for much of the time thanks to her counterpunching approach. She is now through to the third round for the fifth successive year, and will next meet either her fellow-ukrainian, the No 32 seed Dayana Yastremska, or Sweden’s Rebecca Peterson.
“It was a really incredible match,” Svitolina said. “It was really special. It’s unbelievable what Venus does, on and off the court she is a big inspiration.
“I had to stay very focused and try to put an extra ball over the net. She knows how to handle moments like this, it was incredibly tough and only a few points decided the match.”
Svitolina was sharper out of the blocks and established a 5-2 lead in the first set. But as she served for it, her form dipped a little, allowing Williams to break back. The American then saved three set points on her own serve, before in the next game Svitolina upped her power to clinch it.
After placing an order for a mid-match espresso, though, Williams became more energised in the second set, taking a 3-0 lead. But that was just about as good as it got for her, as Svitolina’s solidity began to wear her down.
Williams was able to raise her game enough to serve to stay in the match, playing some remarkable stuff as she saved those five match points. But while that kept her hopes alive for an extra quarter of an hour, she was unable to do anything to stop Wimbledon semi-finalist Svitolina serving out in the very next game.
As had been the case over the course of the day, Svitolina had lost a battle but had what it takes to win the war. Retaining her focus as she served for the match and nailing her first serves, the former World No.3 shook off the drama that had just passed to take her first match point behind her delivery as Williams sent a final forehand over the baseline.