Marta Kostyuk confirms she tore an ankle ligament in dramatic Australian Open loss

Marta Kostyuk said Monday that she tore an ankle ligament during a dramatic Australian Open defeat to Elsa Jacquemot on the first day of the tournament.

Kostyuk, who was seeded No. 20, rolled over her left ankle in the penultimate game of the match when she was leading 30-0 on serve but down 5-6. She eventually lost the 6-7(4), 7-6(4), 7-6(7) match to the 2020 Roland Garros junior champion in three hours and 35 minutes—the first triple-tiebreak clash at the Australian Open as the tournament added a final-set tiebreak in 2019.

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To add insult to injury, Kostyuk had failed to convert a match point more than an hour earlier. She led 7-6(4), 5-3, and had a match point on Jacquemot's serve at 6-5.

"The Australian Open has always been one of my favorite tournaments, so this isn’t how I imagined my run ending," she added. "But that’s part of the sport."

Kostyuk had started the year on a high note, finishing runner-up to top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka at the Brisbane International in her season-opening event. But the loss continued a concerning recent trend. She has now lost in the first round in three of the last five majors.

"Despite the setback, Brisbane was a great way to start the year, and I'm thankful for that momentum," Kostyuk said. "Now it's time to focus on recovery, and I'm excited to be back on court as soon as possible."