Svitolina surges to No. 1 in race with Italian Open title

Elina Svitolina surged to No. 1 in the season-long rankings race by winning the Italian Open on Sunday with a 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 victory over Simona Halep.

It was a tour-best fourth title this year for Svitolina and the most prestigious trophy of her career so far. The 22-year-old Ukrainian also leads the tour with 31 match wins this season, putting her among the favorites for the French Open, which starts next Sunday.

“Every day I’m just trying to work on my mental part, my physical, my tennis,” Svitolina said. “Everything just came together and I’m very happy that it’s happened in such a big tournament.”

“It was very tough first two sets and I’m really happy that it’s all finished,” Svitolina said.