Elina Svitolina became Ukraine’s first Olympic medallist in tennis on Saturday, securing bronze by coming from a set and a break down to beat Kazakh Elena Rybakina. The 26-year-old, who got married to French player Gael Monfils shortly before the Tokyo Games, won the bronze-medal contest 1-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 after almost two-and-a-half hours on court. Svitolina, a former world number three, came through a lengthy final game to win on her seventh match point.
She had trailed 4-1 in the deciding set but reeled off five games in a row to snatch the victory.
Marketa Vondrousova, who beat Svitolina in the semi-finals and home favourite Naomi Osaka in the third round, takes on Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic in the final later on Saturday.
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