There have been some great matches in 2023, but you would be hard pressed to find a better match than what we saw on Sunday in the fourth round of Wimbledon between the two-time grand slam semifinalist Elina Svitolina of Ukraine and two-time major champion Victoria Azarenka of Belarus. The quality of shot making was simply spectacular. There were several very long rallies and a lot of creativity by both players when it came to shot making.
At the end of the day, in this fascinating battle of Eastern European mothers, Svitolina came through with a 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 win. In the third set tiebreak, Svitolina won 11-9, and the Ukrainian was victorious with her eighth ace of the match.
The fourth round encounter went two hours and 46 minutes. The fact that both players were able to display a high quality of tennis in the late stages of the final set was a testament to the remarkable endurance that Azarenka and Svitolina were able to produce.
The accuracy of the serve was the most significant statistic in the match. Azarenka, who won the 2012 and 2013 Australian Open, had eight double faults. Meanwhile, Svitolina, who was the 2019 Wimbledon and United States Open semifinalist, had zero double faults.
Svitolina will next play world number one Iga Swiatek of Poland in the quarterfinals. The reigning French Open champion and United States Open champion was taken to three sets by the reigning Olympic gold medalist Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, before Swiatek won 6-7, 7-6, 6-3. Swiatek won their only prior meeting in the quarterfinals in the 2021 Italian Open.
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