Svitolina gives Ukraine a first round win in Olympic Tennis

Elina Svitolina of Ukraine clenches her fist during round one of the Olympic Tennis Singles tournament at Roland Garros. 

Elina Svitolina put on a display for not only herself but also her country at the Olympic Games on Sunday. The Ukrainian smashed Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima in straight sets 6-2, 6-1 on Court 14 to advance on the grounds of Roland Garros. Svitolina got into a groove in her first-round match, producing a ten-game winning streak before tasting victory.

The Japanese star earned the honor of having a challenging opening round against the only defending medalist of the sport from Tokyo. The Ukrainian stood as heavily favored to repeat, especially after her fourth-round finish in the French Open last month. Svitolina has many years of experience on clay courts in Paris and would be able to take her place back on the world stage.

Uchijima jumped on Svitolina’s service, but the Ukrainian battled back to force deuce, pressing the Japanese player to err for the win. The 22-year-old held her service in the second and achieved the break off Svitolina’s forehand returns smacking into the net. Svitolina fought through the points in their fourth game, until a break chance on deuce handed her the break back.

She notched a superb service in the fifth before scoring the double break off Uchijima in the sixth game. Svitolina’s experience kicked in, taking momentum away from her opponent and producing a strong output in her game. The Ukrainian marched on with her fourth win in a row, leaving Uchijima to figure out how to strike back. Svitolina didn’t give her time, rushing to two set points, earning the set win on a backhand from Uchijima into the net.

It was a 32-minute run for the players, with Uchijima faring well on first-serve shots, but committing two double faults. Svitolina’s second serve was the difference maker, scoring 7 of 11 points. She won four of six from the net and only made seven errors, compared to Uchijima’s ten.

They went into the second, with Svitolina getting back to work on serve. She notched her sixth game win in a row, forcing errors from Uchijima. By the third game, her streak reached eight, leaving the 22-year-old very little chance of responding. For the second time in the match, Svitolina had the double break, leading 4-0 against Uchijima, who saw defeat on the horizon.

The Ukrainian had ten games won before playing for the match against the 22-year-old, who tried to avoid the bagel. She surprised many, with a serve to love in the sixth, ending Svitolina’s streak. She brushed off the loss and coasted through her service for the match, ending it on a smash near the net for the straight sets victory that took one hour and two minutes. 

Paris dazzles in unique opening ceremony to open Paris 2024

Paris impressed the world with an amazing and unique opening ceremony for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics. During a boat parade of athletes, Lady Gaga, Aya Nakamura, and others welcomed the world to the Parisian capital, with musical performances in rainy conditions. 

The event began with a man carrying the torch into an empty Stade de France. Taking the torch away from him was Zinedine Zidane, former captain of the French Soccer team, who ran through the city and onto the metro to get to the Trocadero. As the torch made its way into the Seine, the athletes on ships began to sail west on the river starting with Greece and NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo carrying the flag.

In the middle of the river parade, the ceremony moved to the steppes near the Seine where Lady Gaga performed a French revue. The parade continued as they flipped to cover the path of the Olympic torch, with children carrying it. A mysterious man took charge of the torch and parkoured on the roofs of Paris as the parade went forward. The French revue took the form of the famous can-can dancers before the mystery person flew across the Seine by zip line.

They landed on the roof of Notre Dame, where they honored the builders who helped revive the Cathedral after the devastating fire five years ago. The Olympic flame was walked into the craft workhouse of Louis Vuitton as they carried out giant luggage trunks on bell carts. One was brought down to the spot where USA’s Michael Phelps and French biathlete Martin Fourcade standing by the river. Music took on a stronger position at the ceremony, with Les Misérables taking place in a theater and then heavy metal rock. 

Love and literature took their place in a short montage as operatic songs were sung. The music went to the Bridge de Concorde, with the French Republican Guard Band and Aya Nakamura singing one of her songs, blending the old and new. A short video depicted some of the Louvre’s famous paintings coming to life to see the boat parade of athletes. 

As it reached the Grand Palais, a woman holding the French Drapeau sang Le Marseillais on the roof. While the song continued, large statues of famous French women, who have contributed their skills to benefit the country were shown to the world and will be placed in different parts of Paris. 

The athletes approached the end of their trip to the Eiffel Tower, where a man, who could break dance, sang a beautiful aria in front of the world. Fashion made its mark on a bridge with a consistent runway show. The delegations of Australia, the United States, and France made their way down the Seine as the lights on the Eiffel Tower began to flash. 

Imagine, the John Lennon classic was sung by Juliette Armanet on a makeshift barge with a piano on fire. A metal horse rode down the river, images and video of previous Olympics were shown, while the 205 flags of the world were placed inside the Trocadero. An individual carried the Olympic flag and lifted it into the sky as the Olympic anthem played. 

President Emmanuel Macron opened the games of the 33rd Olympics of the modern era before the final relay of the Olympic Torch arrived at the Trocadero. Zidane had the torch back and handed it to the King of Clay of Roland Garros, Rafael Nadal. After a light show on the Eiffel Tower, Nadal was on a boat with Serena Williams, Carl Lewis, and Nadia Comaneci. Each held the torch as they journeyed down the Seine.  

Waiting at a quay for them was two-time grand slam champion Amelie Mauresmo, who ran the torch up and into the gates of The Louvre where NBA champ Tony Parker waited. He and Amelie met, with 22 other French Olympic athletes, who together met and exchanged the torch to one another. Teddy Riner and Marie-Jose Perec were chosen to light it together. They in turn walked to a hot air balloon-style cauldron, which once lit, rose above The Louvre. A final song at the Eiffel Tower performed by Celine Dion ended the four-hour opening ceremony and opened the action to 15 days of sporting competition.  

Krejcikova surpasses Ostapenko in straight sets at Wimbledon

Barbora Krejcikova celebrates her quarterfinal victory against Jelena Ostapenko to advance at the Championships Wimbledon. 

Jelena Ostapenko’s serve slipped up to give her opponent a maiden semifinal at the Championships Wimbledon on Wednesday. Barbora Krejcikova took advantage of many windows the Latvian opened to win in straight sets 6-4, 7-6(4) on No. 1 court at the All England Tennis Club. 

The Latvian came into her sixth grand slam quarterfinal in a dominant performance at the AETC. Her four wins came with less than five games lost in each and 15 in total overall. It was the fewest committed since Victoria Azarenka’s 14 in 2012. She smashed Yulia Putintseva in straight sets, scoring 29 winners to make her third appearance at this level. While she hadn’t won in nine of her last ten matches at this point, her 29-9 record on grass gave her a chance to remain firm. 

The Czech finally notched her way into Wimbledon’s last eight, falling short three years straight. She served 80 percent against an injured Danielle Collins to clinch her spot. The series leaned heavily in Ostapenko’s favor having five of their seven meetings. The eighth was an important one to make a change or maintain dominance for the Latvian on grass. 

The 27-year-old opened the match, blanking Krejcikova in a blink of an eye. The 31st seed battled the aggressive returns of the Latvian to hold serve in the second. Adding effort to her game, the 28-year-old clinched an early break in the third, holding comfortably to consolidate the fourth. The two played a string of service holds, but the break up for Krejcikova left her two games ahead after eight. 

She gave away a chance to threaten a break opportunity, hitting balls long of the baseline to bring the Latvian within reach. The Czech denied her in the tenth, playing tough for the double break and closing the set in 32 minutes. Krejcikova bested the Latvian on the first serve, producing 78 percent and winning 20 of 21 points from it. 

Ostapenko wanted to set a different pace to begin the second, fighting through two breaks of deuce before holding. The Czech upped the ante, shutting out Ostapenko, but the Latvian had other plans going forward. She took a 3-1 lead, scoring a break against Krejcikova to consolidate a service hold. Krejcikova cut the margin in half in the sixth, then converted a break in the seventh, sitting a game down. 

Krejcikova tied it up on serve to complete a three-game rally back, while Ostapenko struggled to get into the competition. She faced break points for Krejcikova in the ninth, leading the Czech to take the lead and go for the match on serve. It was a tense moment for the Latvian, who somehow got out front briefly before they went to deuce. 

Ostapenko didn’t waste time and took the lone AD point to send them deeper into the second set. Ostapenko notched another win over the Czech in the 11th and tried to put the pressure on the 31st seed. It didn’t work, as the Czech got into position, leveled the score in the twelfth, and put on a display in the tiebreak. Krejcikova got away from a two-all scoring and jumped 5-2 before the Latvian scored her next point. 

The 31st seed reached match point at 6-3, gave one away but held her next attempt to clinch her spot in the last four after 1 hour and 42 minutes. 

Rybakina ends Svitolina in straight sets at Wimbledon

Elena Rybakina gives a wave to the crowd after winning her quarterfinal match at the Championships Wimbledon. 

Elina Svitolina didn’t have the weapons to pull off an upset at the Championships Wimbledon on Wednesday. Elena Rybakina stayed cooled and composed to win in straight sets over the Ukrainian 6-3, 6-2 on Centre Court at the All England Tennis Club. 

The Ukrainian went from having early challenges at the start of the draw to pulling off a surprising win against Xinyu Wang on Monday. It was the second straight sets win for her after dispatching 2023 Wimbledon Finalist Ons Jabeur in the second round. The former world number three was again in place to make another semifinal, but her fight against Rybakina wouldn’t come easy as they split their last four meetings. 

The Kazak won their only meeting on grass and her success of winning Wimbledon gave her some weight of potentially winning. Gaining a break in the fourth round left her enough energy to put on defense against the Ukrainian and place herself closer to adding a second dish to her inventory. 

Svitolina broke the fourth seed in the opening game before the former Wimbledon champ managed to break back. She converted in the third, holding serve against the Ukrainian. Svitolina evened the score, returning to service, but Rybakina got back out front, keeping the fifth game. The Ukrainian stayed in touch with the fourth seed, but the Kazak remained ahead on the scoreboard. 

Rybakina inched closer to the set, breaking Svitolina to love in the eighth to serve it out. She needed to set points to finish the job, but her strength on the forehand handed her the set in 32 minutes. The fourth seed dominated Svitolina on winners with 16 but had more than double the errors than the Ukrainian. It didn’t affect Rybakina’s offense, rolling into the second set comfortably. 

The 25-year-old broke Svitolina before tying in a serve hold in the second. Svitolina reacted fast to get on the board in the third. Rybakina took back control, giving herself a two-game buffer after four. Svitolina held the fifth game but the fourth seed marched forward to sit up 4-2. 

Svitolina felt the pressure on serve in the seventh but found a way to dig in and force deuce. Rybakina held the only AD point played and sealed up the break to serve for the match. She coasted to victory in the eighth, shutting out Svitolina with an ace to get back into the semifinals after 61 minutes on the court. 

Elina Svitolina drops Sara Errani in straight sets

Elina Svitolina serves up a shot to Sara Errani during thier second round match at the BNL Internazionali D'Italia.

Elina Svitolina sped quickly in the first but slowed down in the second set to win at the BNL Internazionali D’Italia on Friday night. A fast first-set win was slowed down by Sara Errani, who gave it her best but lost in straight sets 6-0, 6-3 on Pietrangeli Court at the Foro Italico. 

The two-time champ drew the tough Italian to take on in her home country. Having never beaten her before left the mom with much to battle for in her tenth appearance. Errani got plenty of action in the opening round, taking down Amanda Anisimova in three sets. The tennis vet wanted to rally big in front of her fans and send Svitolina packing for the third time, but Svitolina was more than hungry for back-to-back wins, having not had a pair since Dubai. 

The Ukrainian scored a break to love to open the match against Errani, who didn’t impress early on her serve. Svitolina saw a challenge on serve in the second from the Italian but managed to avoid any breaks from being produced. She captured the double break and coasted through the next three games, achieving the triple break of Errani. She played three set points before taking it on the final one, completing 29 minutes of tennis in the set. Though she outscored the 37-year-old 27-13, there was still plenty of tennis left to play. 

Errani made that clear in the first three games, putting the brakes on Svitolina, who struggled to counter in the first. She slipped up in the second, handing the break to Errani, who suffered a break back to love in the third. The fourth was their most competitive of the match, going to deuce, where they spanned four breaks. The Ukrainian took the victory and converted a break in the fifth. She took the next two games, scoring the double break, and tried serving things out in the eighth. 

Errani turned the tables and gave herself a chance to break Svitolina to love. The 16th seed denied her that opportunity, but she still had two breakpoints to save. Svitolina forced deuce but went to four breaks until she got a second match point on a wide return. She got it on a line drive that brought her day to a successful end after 1 hour and 18 minutes.  

Victoria Azarenka overcomes numerous double faults to win at the Italian Open

Victoria Azarenka playing in her first round match at the BNL Internazionali D'Italia.

Victoria Azarenka came from a disastrous second set to be victorious at the BNL Internazionali D’Italia on Friday. The former world number one committed nine double faults and needed six match points to beat Magda Linette 6-7(5), 6-4. 6-3 on Court 12 at the Foro Italico. It marked the third straight match the two players went the distance. 

The two veterans met for the sixth time and the first to come on clay. The 34-year-old didn’t have things go well in Madrid, suffering a straight sets loss to Sorribes-Tormo in the second round. Despite her early success on the green courts of Charleston, Azarenka’s 14th entry into the open makes her ready as always to compete. The Pole managed great control in her straight sets win against Zhu, opening the door to potentially leveling the series with the former world number one. 

Linette opened the scoring, holding Azarenka to a point on serve. The 24th seed was forced to deuce in her service game but denied her opponent a break chance. She turned things around, breaking Linette on serve in the third, but three more breaks of serve occurred thereafter. By the seventh, the 32-year-old notched her second service hold, taking the lead near the business end of the set. 

Azarenka managed to follow suit in the eighth and break Linette for the lead, setting herself up for a chance at the set. Double faults continued to be a problem for the 34-year-old, opening the door for Linette to counter. The Pole took advantage of the breakpoint chances and scored the key to level at five-all. Linette gained an important hold of serve in the 11th, waiting for the other shoe to drop and take the set. Azarenka tightened up her forehand serves and aggressively took the shots to her opponent. 

It was the best output of the match that took her into a first-set tiebreak with the 32-year-old. The two traded off six points to start the competition until Linette dug deep to take control. Her shots got the best of Azarenka, who struggled to rally back from tough moments and the crowd working against her. The 32-year-old bested the 24th seed, taking the set in one hour and nine minutes. The biggest difference maker was the shocking seven double faults that Azarenka racked up in the opening set. Despite having a better output of first-serve points won, the service of the 24th seed proved devastating. 

It didn’t get better for the 34-year-old, who notched her eighth but held the opening game of the second set. Linette pulled off a shutout in the second and watched Azarenka mark her ninth double fault of the match in the third. The Pole took advantage of the mistake and broke Azarenka for the early lead. 

The 24th seed broke back and stayed in touch with Linette to the eighth game. The problems with the serve smoothed out enough for her to take the lead in the ninth and force Linette further into the match. A push against the Polish veteran in the tenth gave Azarenka the momentum to break the 32-year-old and take the second set after 49 minutes on the court. Linette took a medical timeout to deal with a blister she got on the right hand during the sit-down. 

Once the MTO was complete, the players got into the deciding set with Azarenka leading the way from her serve to love. Linette struggled to get her serve locked down in the second, going a break with Azarenka before clinching it. The 34-year-old notched a second service game and watched her opponent completely fall apart in the fourth. It was there that Linette committed three double faults on serve. An error handed Azarenka the break, who took care of business in the fifth on serve. 

The 24th seed captured the double break on the Pole, who was out of sorts from the amazing performance she had earlier. With the Polish veteran all but out of the competition, Azarenka took her comfort and played out the points until she achieved match point on a ball landing long from Linette. An error from the 34-year-old brought the score to deuce where Linette saved three match points. Azarenka blew a fourth match point and after five breaks to deuce, Linette went on to take the game away for the break. 

The Polish star held serve in the eighth but Azarenka was through letting opportunities slip away. She jumped to a fifth match point on a bad error from Linette but suffered another setback. Azarenka was relieved when a shot from Linette barely landed wide of the baseline, giving her the win that did not come easy after 2 hours and 51 minutes. 

Ostapenko defeats Potapova in straight sets at Italian Open

Jelena Ostapenko plants herself in place for the return during her first round match at the BNL Internazionali D'Italia. 

Jelena Ostapenko dug in late to move forward at the BNL Internazionali D’Italia on Friday. The 26-year-old broke ahead in the sixth game of the second set, defeating Anastasia Potapova 6-4, 6-2 on Pietrangeli court at the Foro Italico. 

The two met last year on grass in an epic semifinal that went the distance and saw Ostapenko step closer to winning the title. The Latvian’s run on clay hasn’t been up to par with what she is capable of. Her losses at Stuttgart and Madrid were tough exits, but with Roland Garros looming, the 26-year-old needed Rome to be her best foot forward. Potapova was out in two rounds at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix and in Madrid. She also wanted something good to come out of her second appearance in the Italian capital. 

The Latvian opened service and built a serve to love against Potapova until a line drive return changed the scoring. The 23-year-old rallied to force deuce only to give Ostapenko the point needed to hold serve. Potapova achieved the service to love in the second, showing her skill to fend off break points. Ostapenko improved her game in the third until Potapova committed the first double fault. The Latvian jumped on the breakpoint opportunity in the fourth to lead 3-1. 

The 26-year-old battled on serve to fight off Potapova’s push to break the ninth seed, widening the gap in scoring. By the eighth game, Ostapenko’s grip loosened, as the 23-year-old tied two games together, frustrating the Latvian. The ninth seed rallied back to hold in the ninth and pushed Potapova deep into her service game in the tenth until a set point clinched the match lead for the Latvian. 

It was a 49-minute bout between the two with Ostapenko committing one double fault, while her opponent notched three. They both played evenly on offense but the leverage went alongside the ninth seed, who produced strong results in the second set. 

Ostapenko rallied on serve and took advantage of Potapova’s double fault in the second game. The third didn’t go to the path for the ninth seed, who missed game point three times, missing by inches. It led the two to play five breaks, with Potapova taking her third break point chance to get on the board. The games stretched out longer in the second set, causing Ostapenko problems on serve, but the ninth seed broke back in the fourth. 

Potapova denied another service hold for Ostapenko, maintaining her reach on the ninth seed. A fifth break gave the ninth seed leverage to battle on and try to outduel her opponent. In the seventh, Ostapenko got the job done on serve, leading 5-2 after two breaks at deuce. In the eighth, Ostapenko needed three match points to close out Potapova in 1 hour and 37 minutes.