Elina Svitolina returned to the tennis court almost two months ago, but the player who achieved the best results of Ukraine in the WTA standings is still missing.

Elina Svitolina defeated Sloane Stephens at the ITF Saint Malo

The former world No. 3 became a mother and did not participate in competitions for a year, and it is not easy to come back.

Having been eliminated from WTA Madrid in the first round, Svitolina managed to reach the semifinals of the tournament in Saint Malo.

After two sets of two hours and 20 minutes, Sloane Stevens won 7-5, 7-6(5).

The main favorite of the tournament, Stevens (48 WTA), will meet the Belgian Grete Minnen (173 WTA) in the final.

Despite missing the final act of the competition, Elina Svitolina is making a huge leap up the rankings, starting outside the top 1,000 players and reaching 540th in the WTA Live rankings.

The Saint Malo Open 35 is played on clay and is part of the “WTA 125” category, with a total prize pool of $115,000. The title champion is Beatrice Haddad Maya.