Photo: EPA
Ukrainian tennis star Elina Svitolina kicked off her season with a win.
On Tuesday, January 6, Svitolina, ranked 13th in the WTA, began her campaign at the WTA tournament in Auckland, New Zealand.
In the first round, she defeated former Russian player Varvara Gracheva, who now represents France and is ranked 75th, in just 1 hour and 17 minutes, 6-3, 6-1.
In the next round, Svitolina will face Britain’s Katie Boulter, who earlier defeated Ukrainian Yuliya Starodubtseva.
The Auckland tournament runs from January 5 to 11 and marks Svitolina’s first event of the new season after nearly a four-month break. The 31-year-old ended her 2025 season early in September due to emotional exhaustion.
Svitolina is the top seed in Auckland and reached the final of the tournament two years ago.
