Elina Svitolina finds strength in stepping back, talks burnout recovery at Australian Open

MELBOURNE, Australia—I have a picture from one of the first times I spoke with Elina Svitolina. She had just won the 2017 Canadian Open and I was the last stop of her post-match media tour. She put her feet up on the table of an empty make-shift office and angled her body forward, clearly eager to move on to the celebratory phase of the evening.

Dozens of interviews later, I meet a warmer, world-wearier Svitolina this week at the 2026 Australian Open, one who counters the cliché of the self-centered athlete. For the last three years, Svitolina has had to be strong, not only for herself as she navigates a comeback from maternity leave in her 30s, but also for her family as she supports a husband in the final stage of his own career and for a country looking to her for light and inspiration amidst an un-ending invasion.

“I’m a person that’s a fighter,” Svitolina told me, somewhat stating the obvious. “I go through a lot when I’m on the court, and when you’re not in the right state of mind, it’s impossible to win.”

Svitolina can trace her fighting spirit throughout her career, but not much remains of the defensive counterpuncher that played on tour in her 20s. After giving birth to daughter Skaï, she came back employing far more offense without sacrificing the athleticism that took her to No. 3 in the WTA rankings. In 11 Grand Slam outings since becoming a mother, she has made the second week at seven; her pinnacle came at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships when she stunned then-world No. 1 Iga Swiatek to reach the semifinals.

She began 2025 in that proverbial second line of players capable of big results at major tournaments and eager to keep tweaking to find that championship formula, changing her racquet and following a strict diet to emerge in better shape than ever. Though she initially made good on that mission with back-to-back quarterfinals at the Australian Open and Roland Garros, external pressures were taking their toll on the tour’s foremost activist on behalf of the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Where other players can focus purely on practice schedules, Svitolina has led multiple charitable initiatives to support her compatriots, and her very presence on tour represents something greater for those at home and on the front lines.

“I feel like I have these obligations,” she explained, “to be good and to fight and to continue bringing the good news.”

When you’re young and fresh, you can face a lot of situations. You’re like, fired up and ready to conquer the world! As you get older, you have a lot in your backpack and you’ve picked up a lot of stones, so it’s not easy to deal with all of that. Elina Svitolina

The critical point came after the US Open when Svitolina donned her flag’s blue and yellow to compete at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals. In position to lead Ukraine into the championship match, she lost a decisive rubber to Jasmine Paolini from a set up.

“After Billie Jean King Cup, I was not feeling well,” she said. “I felt lots of things were on my shoulders. I didn’t perform as I wished I could, and I almost felt like I let down my country, my team, everybody. For me in that moment, I couldn’t fight anymore.”

Svitolina posted a powerful statement to social media in the days that followed, announcing her decision to shut down her 2025 season in the interest of “giving \[herself\] the space to heal and recharge.”

“It was maybe a surprising decision because I was in the Race [to the WTA Finals in Riyadh] and maybe had those opportunities,” mused Svitolina, who ended the season ranked at No. 14, “but it’s not only about tennis. It’s about the mental health you have to take care of. I wouldn’t want to damage myself just for one season.

“Had I continued and broke myself even more, I could have injured myself, and I wouldn’t have been able to start the season here.”

A younger Svitolina indeed would have pushed through the burnout in the hopes of playing into a new plateau; she played a whopping 22 tournaments at her 2019 peak. Now 31, the Odesa native has erred towards a more conservative schedule in her second career, hoping to preserve her physical—and now mental—health as her Grand Slam prospects remain viable.

“With experience over the years, I’ve faced different situations, but it’s not the same as when you start your career. Then, you’re young and fresh, you can face a lot of situations. You’re like, fired up and ready to conquer the world!” Svitolina said with a laugh. “As you get older, you have a lot in your backpack and you’ve picked up a lot of stones, so it’s not easy to deal with all of that.”

Standing by Svitolina through those uncertain months was husband and fellow Gaël Monfils, who has long felt the support from his “g.e.m.s. life” partner through his own physical and emotional struggles on the back half of a 20-year career.

“All the time [she was] telling me, pushing me through, out of the limits a little bit,” said Monfils, who will officially retire at the end of 2026. “But worth it. Happy that I could find something different. Of course, she was a big part of that.

“Of course, she's extremely strong, but sometimes I think the body and even the mind has to recharge. It was a great decision for her. Was not easy, to be honest. But we were there, her family, myself, to tell her that that was the right decision. [We’re] her team.”

I feel like I have these obligations to be good and to fight and to continue bringing the good news [to Ukraine]. Elina Svitolina

With her team’s blessing, Svitolina unplugged from the game, taking a month away from tennis entirely as she prioritized time with family.

“This is the only way to do it for me,” said Svitolina, “because when you’re too much in it, you see other people doing well and winning, and it’s a natural feeling to get overwhelmed and nervous in reaction to that. You’re not seeing the picture clearly, so for me, it helps to step back completely, stop a little bit. It can be for one week maybe, and you skip a tournament. I skipped a few at the end of the year because it was a little too late, but stepping back is the way that works.”

With Skaï at home—"She’s busy going to birthdays and spending time with her friends”—Svitolina arrived in Auckland for the ASB Classic fully refreshed and facing a unique opportunity. As the top seed, she dropped just one set to win a 19th WTA title and make a bit of history, joining Monfils as the first husband-and-wife duo to win the title in the same 12 months.

“I was very motivated to try and achieve this, so I’m very happy we made it happen. It’s something to remember in ten years, we’ll talk about winning the same tournament. We’ll have the two trophies at home!”

Undefeated through her first seven matches, Svitolina is into the third round in Melbourne and in with a chance to return to the Top 10 for the first time since her comeback. For a player who has learned what it means to sacrifice for greater goals, that would be a picture she looks more than ready to take.

“It really shows that it was good that I took some time off. It helped me to regroup and be ready to fight and face difficult situations, and just be here enjoying, 100%.”