Elina Svitolina kept her semifinal hopes alive at the 2026 WTA Finals on Wednesday. The 2018 champion rallied from a set down to beat Karolína Muchová 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 at Indian Wells.
The result evened Svitolina’s Group 2 record at 1-1, while marking her 11th career WTA Finals win — and her first since 2019.
Elina Svitolina Outlasts Karolína Muchová in 3-Set Battle
Muchová dictated the opening set. She mixed in drop shots and clever forehands, then charged the net while Svitolina stayed glued to the baseline.
Svitolina hit just five winners against 14 unforced errors in that set. However, she turned it around in the second, posting 12 winners to 11 errors.
From there, the Ukrainian won 12 of the final 16 games. She broke twice in a row in the decider, while Muchová battled eight double faults.
“I was really unhappy with the first set,” Svitolina said afterward. “In the end, I think that the third set was a better level.”
The loss snapped Muchová’s 32-0 winning record this season after taking the opening set.
What’s Next at the 2026 WTA Finals
Svitolina now faces No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka on Friday with a semifinal berth still in reach.
Meanwhile, Muchová fell to 0-2 in her WTA Finals debut, with Mirra Andreeva’s win subsequently knocking her out of semifinal contention.
