Caroline Wozniacki and Elina Svitolina have been drawn to meet in the Cincinnati first round. Wozniacki, the 2018 Australian Open champion, returned to pro tennis after three and a half years this week in Montreal. Svitolina, a former world No 3, made a comeback in April after being out for 13 months. After welcoming her first kid in 2021, Wozniacki also delivered her second child in 2022. Last October, Svitolina also welcomed her first kid. In recent months, Svitolina has been one of the most inspiring stories in tennis. Now, 33-year-old Wozniacki is also hoping to make a strong return to tennis after welcoming kids.Ā
Wozniacki set to meet Svitolina in her second tournament back
This week, Wozniacki got her first pro tennis action in three and a half years. After dismantling Kimberly Birrell 6-2 6-2 in the Montreal first round, Wozniacki competed well against Marketa Vondrousova in her following match but the reigning Wimbledon champion beat the Dane 6-2 7-5. After concluding her Montreal run, Wozniacki was positive with how her campaign went.
“I think as a competitor you always want to win obviously, but at the end of the day if I look at this tournament, I’m proud of myself. I’m happy that I got to play two matches. I’m happy that I kind of know where I stand, what I can do moving forward. I think it’s a great learning curve, and I’m happy that I know where I am, and I don’t feel like I’m that far away from where I want to be. It’s great to be here and learn a lot along the way,” Wozniacki said.
When Wozniacki and Svitolina meet in Cincinnati, it will be their sixth meeting. Going into the match, Svitolina owns a 4-1 head-to-head against Wozniacki. Wozniacki’s lone win over Svitolina came at the 2017 WTA Finals. In their last match at the 2018 WTA Finals, Svitolina beat Wozniacki in three sets.