E-Paper
Sign In
Spirit, stamina and survival: Svitolina conquers Gauff in Dubai epic
Ukrainian Elina Svitolina outlasts Coco Gauff of the US in a three-hour Dubai thriller, showing grit and precision to move one win away from a historic third title
- PUBLISHED: Sat 21 Feb 2026, 1:14 AM
Showing an indomitable spirit, Elina Svitolina, wife of the retiring French showman Gael Monfils, won a gladiatorial battle against Coco Gauff to keep her dream alive of winning a third title at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
When Gauff’s forehand return failed to clear the net at 4-5 in the third set, Svitolina bent over, covering her face in disbelief as the lung-busting marathon had just ended, with the Ukrainian finally clinching the deal on her sixth match point after three hours and three minutes.
Recommended For You
It was a match of fine margins and even finer shot-making from two fantastic players.
One is a two-time Grand Slam winner and an African-American youth icon.
The other, a battle-hardened Ukrainian and mother of a two-year-old, has become a powerful voice against the cruelty war inflicts on humanity.
It was tragic that only one player could emerge as the winner from an edge-of-the-seat thriller that saw both players captivate the Centre Court crowd with breathtaking tennis.
“Coco is such a big player. I think the margins were really, really tiny. It was really high-level for both of us throughout these three sets. High intensity. It was a really incredible match that we played,” she said.
A Grand Slam title may have eluded Svitolina, but Saturday presents her with a wonderful opportunity to earn a slice of tennis history in Dubai.
Svitolina will now fancy her chances of joining the iconic Venus Williams as the second-most successful Dubai champion with three titles, one behind all-time leader Justine Henin, the legendary Belgian.
But for that to happen, Svitolina needs to recover physically and mentally from the brutal three-set semifinal battle — 6-4 6-7 (13-15) 6-4 —which featured an incredible 28-point second-set tie-break in which Gauff saved four match points to force a decider.
Svitolina will nevertheless take inspiration from her back-to-back Dubai triumphs in 2017 and 2018.
“I had really special moments on this court, winning for the first time here, entering the top 10. Coming the next year, winning it again,” she said.
“Of course, I have great memories. Have great support here. I'm very much enjoying the fight. It's going to be a special moment. I try not think too much about it right now. For me, it's just about recovering and trying to do my very best to be in good shape tomorrow.”
Svitolina knows her final opponent, Jessica Pegula, will pose a tough challenge on Saturday, having seen the world number five script a stirring come-from-behind win over Amanda Anisimova in the first semifinal.
“We know each other's games. For me, for now, to be fair, it’s important to recover physically because it's going to be another physical match. Here, with the conditions, you really have to rely on your physicality,” she said.
“But, yeah, it’s another final. For me, it's a nice moment, another moment to take this challenge.”
For Gauff, Friday night’s defeat in the seesaw battle was a bitter pill to swallow, less than a month after her Australian Open quarterfinal loss to Svitolina.
“It’s tough to be on the losing end of a match like this. I thought Elina played great tennis, and it came down to the wire,” the world number four said.
“Actually, I started the week here just trying to win one match, so I am glad to have made it to the semis, and I was really close to making it to the final.”
The final on Saturday will be Svitolina’s first in seven years at a WTA 1000 tournament, an incredible feat for someone who made a heartwarming return to the top 10 of women’s tennis following her maternity break.
Rituraj Borkakoty is Sports Editor and has spent more than two decades writing on his sporting heroes. He also loves an underdog story, so if you have one, share it with him. He would love to bring it to life.