Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina lost to Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina in the semifinal of the WTA 1000 tournament in Indian Wells. The match ended in straight sets.
This was reported by Champion.
The match lasted 1 hour and 46 minutes and ended with Rybakina’s victory, 7:5, 6:4.
The first set was mostly evenly contested. After exchanging breaks early in the set, both players held their serves for a long stretch. At 5:5, Rybakina won a difficult game on Svitolina’s serve and then confidently served out the set, 7:5.
The second set was less competitive. Svitolina managed to win three games from 1:5 down, including saving two match points, but was unable to turn the match around.
During the match, Svitolina hit five aces, made seven double faults and converted one break. Rybakina recorded six aces, made one double fault and converted four breaks.
It was the seventh meeting between the players, with Svitolina having three wins. In the final, Rybakina will face the world No. 1, “neutral” player Aryna Sabalenka.
Reaching the semifinal became Svitolina’s second appearance at that stage in Indian Wells after 2019. Overall, it was her 14th semifinal at WTA 1000 tournaments, six of which she won.
This result will allow Svitolina to move up to eighth place in the WTA rankings next week.
On her way to the semifinal, the Ukrainian defeated Laura Siegemund, Ashlyn Krueger, Katerina Siniakova, who retired at the beginning of the second set, and world No. 2 Iga Świątek.