Elina Svitolina wins maiden match at Mubadala Citi Open

Elina Svitolina in her first round match against Victoria Azarenka at the Mubadala Citi Open. 

Elina Svitolina came out on top in her first match at the Mubadala Citi Open in Washington D.C. on Monday night. The 28-year-old battled Victoria Azarenka, who held her through most of their hard court matches, winning in straight sets 7-6(2), 6-4 on Stadium Court at the FitzGerald Tennis Center. It marked the second consecutive match win against Azarenka, building together a new streak.

The birthday girl faced the Ukrainian for the second time and first since their fourth-rounder at Wimbledon. It was the first win for the 28-year-old against Azarenka, who won their previous five meetings. The 34-year-old carried the experience of playing in Washington while her opponent made her debut at the tournament. Most of Azarenka’s wins against Svitolina came on hard courts, leaving the former world number one in a good spot to handle the situation.

Azarenka didn’t start her serve right, giving Svitolina an open door. The 28-year-old walked through to take the victory and ran through her service in the second. After 10 points, it was Svitolina winning every single one of them. She made it 12 straight, with a double break in hand and two double faults to the former world number one. The Ukrainian suffered a problem with her serve to give the first pair of points to Azarenka in the fourth. It turned into a break to love for the 34-year-old, ending her long slide.

A complete turn of momentum occurred in the following game, where Azarenka took control of her serve and built an amazing comeback. She found her offense and kept it in check to dominate Svitolina until she had a 4-3 lead. With a winning streak in place, Svitolina knew that she had to end the one-sided traffic. Another break went in favor of Azarenka, who earned the chance to serve for the set. Svitolina caught a chance to break when the 34-year-old committed a third double fault. It was a bad occurrence that led the Ukrainian to sit a game down.

The 28-year-old held the tenth to move further on in the set, keeping the opportunities alive. In the 11th, the two battled through points until Svitolina brought up a breakpoint. The final rally ended with Azarenka returning one just long of the baseline. The two went to a tiebreak as Svitolina committed a third double fault, giving Azarenka a break chance. She succeeded in doing so, opening the final battle of the set.

Svitolina captured the first four points before the 34-year-old aced her way to get on the board. A return bounced off the top of the net, forcing the ball out for Azarenka. The Ukrainian served herself up five set points, with the 34-year-old acing one. She failed to cover the gap, going down to Svitolina after 59 minutes. Both had 35 combined errors and 40 percent success on points won from the serve.

The second got underway, with Azarenka drawing first blood in the shape of a break. Svitolina broke back in the second, showing no signs of letting up. The two played four breaks in a row until the Ukrainian held in the fifth. She gained a two-game cushion, backing up the hold of serve and a double break in hand. The 34-year-old refused to give another game to Svitolina, breaking back in the seventh to sit a game down.

The 28-year-old broke back in the eighth to sit up 5-3, putting the pressure on Azarenka while serving for the match. Azarenka saved another game so inch closer to Svitolina, who suffered the break. The Ukrainian remained focused and watched her opponent make mistakes. A double fault and a pair of errors put Svitolina into place to take the victory and avoid a deciding set. It was a 1 hour and 48-minute battle that saw neither of them at their best, but a push for the former world number three allowed her to post a maiden victory in the nation’s capital.

“The (Ukrainian) flags definitely motivated me to push and to always when I face difficulties in the match. I look at the flag to push and fight more.”