Elina Svitolina won the Tie Break Tens in New York City, while Serena Williams and Marion Bartoli continued their comeback.
Respecting Elina Svitolina’s athletic performance, the most emotional moment of the evening was a different one: when Serena Williams and Marion Bartoli entered the black court in Madison Square Garden, a very special energy was felt in the world famous arena.
Serena is back – and with her unmistakable game “She has the power, length and knows what to do. Ingeniously played,”enthused Venus Williams, who was also involved in the show fight.
Her younger sister had started with a 10-5 win over former Wimbledon winner Bartoli, but in the semi-final Serena had to admit defeat to the Chinese Zhang Shuai 11:13.
Williams didn’t let that spoil his good mood,”It was fun tonight. I am happy to be back,”said the young mother afterwards. After her one-year break for a baby, the 23-times Grand Slam winner had already returned to the professional stage in the Fed Cup, but had contented herself with a double appearance in the duel with the Netherlands.
For former Wimbledon winner Bartoli, it was even the first big performance after four-and-a-half years of abstinence,”I just love tennis so much. And then playing against Serena, who is my biggest friend, means so much to me. I was incredibly looking forward to it,”said the Frenchwoman.
Svitolina, however, was not impressed by the folklore: After victories against Venus Williams (10:3), CoCo Vandeweghe (10:0) and Zhang Shuai (10:3), the 23-year-old from Ukraine received a princely cheque of USD 250,000.
“To have won here was something special. I am happy that I was able to show my best tennis right from the start,”said the winner of the first Tie-Break-Ten edition with a complete women’s field.
The exhibition also left lasting memories with semi-finalist Vandeweghe. After Grandpa Ernie and Uncle Kiki – both of whom used to play basketball for the Knicks in the past – it was the New York-born girl’s third in her family to enjoy the unique atmosphere of cooking on the pitch.