Elina Svitolina, seeded seventh, and Marta Kostyuk, seeded 15th, will meet in the French Open quarter-finals starting June 1 to contest a place in the semi-finals at Roland Garros [1, 2].
The match guarantees a Ukrainian woman will reach the semi-finals for the first time in the Open Era, a milestone amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine that has lasted more than four years [1, 2]. Svitolina said, "There’s going to be Ukraine in the semi-final, so it's already amazing. I think in such a difficult situation right now, in the war with the invasion, it's really, really difficult, and I think it's really inspiring for the next generation to really believe that it is possible one day to play in this sport and win" [1].
Kostyuk reached the quarter-finals by defeating four-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek, marking her first time at this stage in the tournament [1, 2]. Just hours before her first-round match, Kostyuk’s family home in Kyiv was struck by a Russian missile. Reflecting on that moment, Kostyuk said, "I felt sick just for the thought that if it was 100 metres closer, I probably wouldn't have a mum and a sister today" [1].
Oleksandra Oliynykova was the only other Ukrainian player in the tournament but has now been eliminated, leaving only Svitolina and Kostyuk as the last Ukrainian participants [1, 2].
The winner of the all-Ukrainian quarter-final will face the winner of the semi-final between 19-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva, seeded eighth, and 36-year-old Romanian Sorana Cirstea, seeded 18th and set to retire at the end of the season [1, 2]. Andreeva, who defeated Cirstea at the Linz Open in April, is viewed as a strong contender to reach the semi-finals for the second time after strong performances in 2023 and 2024 [1, 2].
On the men’s side, second seed Alexander Zverev will play 19-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jodar in the quarter-finals. This will be Zverev’s eighth appearance in the Roland Garros quarter-finals [1, 2].