Elina Svitolina weathers cold from daughter Skaï to make winning Australian Open return

Elina Svitolina arrived Down Under later than she planned, but looked no worse for wear in her first Australian Open match since 2022, easing past Aussie Taylah Preston in straight sets to continue her compelling comeback from maternity leave.

The 29-year-old Ukrainian left tour not long after a third-round exit from Australia two years ago to give birth to daughter Skaï, who accompanied mom and dad Gaël Monfils to the Happy Slam after a minor hiccup nearly kept her from the ASB Classic, where she ultimately finished runner-up to Coco Gauff in the final, last week.

“It was not easy for us because she got very sick the day before we left, so we had to push back the flight,” she explained after her 59-minute win over Preston. “And, you know, these kinds of things you do now these days putting the priority of your child, it is the life like this right now.”

The former world No. 3 has made the work-motherhood balance look very easy since returning to tennis last spring, surging into the quarterfinals of her first major back at Roland Garros. She bettered the feat three weeks later at Wimbledon, stunning world No. 1 Iga Swiatek en route to the semifinals.

Skaï wasn’t with the family at Wimbledon or the US Open, where she pushed Jessica Pegula to three sets in the third round, and Svitolina expressed relief for everyone to be together in Australia in spite of the long flights.

“I'm happy that I brought her with me. I had some trips without her, like, to Wimbledon, for example. To US Open, as well, she didn't come. But now since she's already one year and four months, you know, it's a little bit easier.

“The weather is super nice [here],” she added. “In Europe it’s a little bit cold, snowing. So, it's nice for her to be here, spend a lot of time in the park with my mom, with the nanny, as well. So it is nice to have her, because when you are leaving for very long time, it's difficult, mentally. There is plus and minus, you know, in this situation, but I feel like we made the right choice on this time.”

Svitolina has found much to play for in this second chapter of her career, motivated not only by her young daughter but also her war-torn country: TENNIS.com’s own Pete Bodo lauded her poise under immense geo-political pressure, the likes of which has made her a national hero.

“I’m here in a safe place and I have this amazing opportunity to play tennis in front of so many people—the sport that I love,” Svitolina said. “I have to treasure this moment.”

Svitolina will next face Viktoriya Tomova for a chance to reach the third round of the Australian Open; young Skaï will no doubt be watching.