Svitolina lost her opener in Madrid, which may have worked to her advantage. She says it gave her a rare chance to do some serious mid-season training.
“It was important to prioritize my fitness, my kind of strength, because in such a busy schedule, don’t have so much time to train physically,” Svitolina said. “I really had a good eight days of training. Completely switched off from tennis.”
Chalk that up as another effect of the 1000s expansion: Early losers can get a training block in.
Whatever Svitolina did, it has suddenly turned her into a contender for the title not just in Rome, but Roland Garros as well. In her last two matches, she has knocked off two of the other favorites for Paris, Elena Rybakina and Iga Swiatek, by playing with exceptionally locked-in determination and confidence under pressure.
