Marta Kostyuk celebrated her Madrid Open triumph in unforgettable fashion, landing a stunning backflip moments after defeating Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 7-5 in the women’s singles final on Saturday.
The victory marked a career-defining breakthrough for the 23-year-old, who clinched her maiden WTA 1000 title and the third trophy of her career. In doing so, Kostyuk became only the second Ukrainian woman to lift a WTA 1000 crown, further cementing her rapid ascent on the tour.
Heading into the French Open, Kostyuk is in red-hot form. She has now won 12 consecutive matches on clay, a run that includes her recent title in Rouen, signaling her growing threat on the surface.
How Kostyuk outplayed Andreeva
Kostyuk set the tone early with aggressive baseline play, using her power to take control of rallies, while Andreeva attempted to counter with variation and composure. The breakthrough came in the sixth game, as Kostyuk forced errors to secure a crucial break for 4-2 and soon moved 5-2 ahead. Despite a brief wobble while serving for the set — including a double fault on set point — she quickly regained focus to wrap up the opener 6-3.
The second set unfolded as a tense contest of momentum swings. Andreeva surged to a 3-1 lead, but Kostyuk responded strongly to level at 3-3. With the pressure mounting, Andreeva faltered at 5-4, missing key set points, while Kostyuk rose to the occasion with clutch serving. A costly double fault from Andreeva handed Kostyuk the decisive break, and the Ukrainian showed composure beyond her years to serve out the match.
“It feels unbelievable to be standing here right now,” Kostyuk said. “I can only thank my team for supporting me throughout the years. If you look at the stats, I was way down the line and never thought I would be here, playing the way I am.”
Seeded 26th, Kostyuk’s title run featured impressive wins over Jessica Pegula, Caty McNally and Linda Noskova, before she defeated Anastasia Potapova in the semi-finals.
Unbeaten on clay this season, Kostyuk now arrives in Paris as one of the form players to watch.
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