Marta Kostyuk Reaches the French Open Semifinals for the First Time

Marta Kostyuk has etched her name in the history of Ukrainian tennis: in the quarterfinals of the 2026 French Open, she defeated Elina Svitolina with a score of 6:3, 2:6, 6:2, becoming the first Ukrainian woman to reach the semifinals of the French Open in singles.

This was the first-ever quarterfinal match in Grand Slam history between two Ukrainians. The rivals spent 1 hour and 49 minutes on the court, providing the audience with numerous thrilling rallies. After exchanging victories in the first two sets, they engaged in a true showdown at the start of the third, where they lost their serve in five consecutive games. Ultimately, the advantage tilted in favor of the younger player from Kyiv.

For Marta, this marks her first career semifinal in a Grand Slam tournament: her previous best result in majors was a quarterfinal appearance at the 2024 Australian Open.

Thanks to this triumph, the 23-year-old tennis player climbed to a record 12th place in the world rankings.

Kostyuk did not shy away from addressing the war context in her post-match speech. "It was another very difficult night in Ukraine — many people lost their lives. I want to dedicate this match to the Ukrainian people and their resilience," said the athlete.

In the semifinals, Kostyuk will face Mirra Andreyeva, whom she has already defeated twice in 2026: in the quarterfinals of the tournament in Brisbane and in the final of the Masters event in Madrid.

Read also: Marta Kostyuk: “Our goal is to create conditions for every child to play tennis”