Elina Svitolina keeps on getting closer to her first Grand Slam title.
The Open’s No. 5 seed booked a place in the quarterfinals on Sunday with a well-won 6-3, 6-3 victory over scrappy Simona Halep, who did well to the reach the Round of 16 after sitting out for three months this season with a calf tear.
Svitolina won her 16th career title in Chicago last week and extended her winning streak to nine straight matches. She is 37-16 on the season, highlighted by an Olympic bronze medal in Tokyo.
“I think I’m playing really aggressive right now,” said Svitolina, who has now reached her eighth Grand Slam quarterfinal.
Her best showing in the Open was a semifinal loss to Serena Williams in 2019.
“I think [this is] the most aggressive I’ve ever been, making lots of winners, serving really good,” Svitolina added. “I want to keep this going, feeling that I’m in a good mind. Yeah, ready for my next match.”
That will be against precocious 18-year-old Leylah Fernandez, who eliminated former Open champion Angelique Kerber 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2.
Halep takes away some positives from a season impacted by injury (she strained her right hamstring on her return in August), plus she contracted COVID in October of last year.
“No pain, no injury. So this is the most important thing,” Halep said. “Now I need a little bit of rest and to reflect a little bit what I have to do better next time against her because always it’s been a tough match with her.”
