Marta Kostyuk made history on Tuesday at Philippe-Chatrier, defeating fellow Ukrainian Elina Svitolina 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 in the first all-Ukrainian Grand Slam quarterfinal. The 23-year-old extended her remarkable 2026 clay-court winning streak to 17-0 and booked her maiden major semifinal appearance.
Marta Kostyuk becomes first Ukrainian to reach Roland Garros semifinals
Kostyuk, seeded 15th and fresh off a strong clay season that included a title in Madrid, showed resilience and composure in the decisive set. She overcame a second-set dip to close out the match strongly against Svitolina, a veteran and former top player who has been a trailblazer for Ukrainian tennis.
In an emotional on-court interview, Kostyuk dedicated the victory to her homeland. She said:
“I want to give this match to Ukrainian people and to their resilience.”
The Ukrainian’s voice cracked with emotion amid recent events in Ukraine, eliciting a powerful, prolonged response from the crowd.
This breakthrough marks a significant milestone for Ukrainian women’s tennis. Kostyuk becomes the first to reach the French Open semifinals in the Open Era. In addition to this, she has also become the second Ukrainian overall after Andrei Medvedev in the men’s draw.
Marta has joined an elite group as one of just a handful of Ukrainian women to reach a Grand Slam semifinal. Next up for Kostyuk on Thursday is a semifinal clash against Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva.
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