Svitolina and the importance of her break in 2025: "It helped me to let go of everything and start over from scratch"

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Elina Svitolina is undoubtedly the breakthrough player so far in 2026. In just three months of competition, she has already accumulated 19 victories with only three defeats, the latest of which came in the quarterfinals of Indian Wells 2026, after beating the world number two, Iga Swiatek (6-2, 4-6, 6-4).

With her advance to the semifinals of the Californian tournament, the Ukrainian ensures she will leave as the world number eight, possibly even as the seventh if she clinches the trophy next Sunday. This is a consequence of the great work done in 2026, particularly in 2025 when, in mid-September, she decided to end the season citing mental health issues. She spoke about that therapeutic decision, her impressive match against Iga Swiatek, and the improvements in her tennis during the press conference after her victory.

Happy to win in three sets against Iga Swiatek

"It was a good day for me. I played really well. I wouldn’t say it was a perfect match, but somehow I managed to stay in the game, fight, and find a solution after losing the second set. But yes, I'm very happy overall with my performance."

Seeking to be more aggressive in 2026

"In general, you have to try to be more aggressive and trust your shots. Champions don’t wait for the opponent's errors; you have to position yourself well to attack. I felt good and tried to open up the court and take the initiative because Iga is a very aggressive player and moves very well. If you don’t seize the opportunity at the right moment, she will. So, it was important to do so."

On the changes that have led to her great start to the year

"Certainly, I worked on my game and some tactical aspects. We also analyzed statistics to see what worked on the court and what didn’t. It was important for me to see it with my own eyes because sometimes the feeling and reality can be different."

"That's why I have my team providing me with all that information. Then I had time to work on some things: serve, return, and overall a bit of everything. We are at such a high level that those small differences or adjustments make the difference between being consistent or simply having good weeks occasionally."

The tactical adjustments in the third set helped her win the match

"I tried to be more consistent, especially because in the second set, I made some mistakes and didn’t take advantage of my chances. I had to continue being aggressive. I wouldn’t say I changed something radically, but I tried to open up the court more and work the ball a bit more. Hitting everything flat is risky, so adding some spin was important to capitalize on the small opportunities I was given by Iga."

Seeking greater control in her matches

"For me, it's important to find small aspects to improve my game. I’m playing well, but I want to be even more consistent and win matches more easily in some cases."

"Those small details are what you try to enhance. I feel they have helped me see my game in a slightly different way. Some things just clicked. I think everything was gradually falling into place, and here are the results. I want to keep pushing and do even better."

Elina Svitolina explains how crucial her mid-2025 break was for her career

"Yes, definitely. The time I took, especially mentally, made a big difference. I was overwhelmed, very tired, completely exhausted. Perhaps I was also putting too much pressure on myself, besides everything I have to manage in my life. Sometimes it's important to pause a bit. In my case, it helped me let go of everything and start afresh. I didn’t play for a month. I did physical work, fitness, and preventive measures to improve small aspects. Then I gradually resumed specific court work until I began training again with my coach and the team."

"It really refreshed my mind. I went from feeling overwhelmed to feeling ready again to face tough situations and rediscover that inner fire that drives me. If you don’t have that fire, you don’t want to train or do routine work, and tennis relies a lot on that," states Elina Svitolina, who took a step back in September 2025 to take two steps forward in 2026.
 

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Svitolina y la importancia de su parón en 2025: "Me ayudó a soltar todo y empezar de nuevo desde cero"