Kostyuk Sees the Bright Side After Wimbledon Defeat

Marta Kostyuk leaves Wimbledon having just completed the most successful phase of her tennis career. Two Grand Slam semifinals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon and 21 of 23 matches won. 

She may have fallen short in her semifinal against 21-year-old Linda Noskova on Centre Court, but the 24-year-old Ukrainian wasn’t about to get down on herself. 

“All credit to her, she played unbelievable today,” she said after the 6-4, 6-4 loss. “The serving was insane.

“Sandra [Zaniewska] told me all her worst sides of the direction, her serve quality was 9.5. Doesn’t get better than this. I know I’m a good returner. Not much I could do today. Not many chances.” 

Despite falling short of reaching a maiden major final in straight sets on two occasions – Kostyuk lost to Mirra Andreeva in Paris last month, 6-1, 6-3 – Kostyuk looks back on her breakthrough Wimbledon fondly. 

“I think at this moment I’m the most happy with the freedom that I gave myself to try different things on the court and just to play tennis,” she said. “Again, grass was not my best surface. I don’t think it still is.

“For sure I’m super happy with how I deal with the losses. I mean, it’s one thing to talk about this, but then once you lose, it’s how you deal with it. Right now I’m sitting here and I really feel like I won today – It’s all that matters.” 

Kostyuk, who had a 17-match winning streak snapped in the Roland Garros semifinals, and progressed past the third round at Wimbledon for the first time in six career appearances, says she would love a bit more good fortune next time around. 

“A little bit of luck maybe would be good. I didn’t have any in both matches,” she said. 

As far as improvements, she plans to continue her progression in all areas, and says she is already eager to hit the hard courts. 

“There is always something that you can get better at: return, serve, not rushing, your focus, everything. Everything has to be a constant improvement. I’m hoping I’m going to have a lot more opportunities. Right now, I mean, I’m grateful to have these two semifinals.

“I want to cherish this moment and I want to appreciate how far we’ve all come, me and my team.”