Elina Svitolina was full of praise for Aryna Sabalenka after the world No. 1 denied her the chance to reach a maiden Grand Slam final. The Ukrainian star suffered a 6-2 6-3 defeat to Sabalenka, who won six of the last seven games from a break down. But they did not shake hands at the net, as has been the case in every match between Ukrainian and Russian or Belarusian players.

There was still plenty of respect between Svitolina and Sabalenka after the contest. The top seed applauded Svitolina off the court, and the former world No. 3 has now conceded that Sabalenka was simply “on fire”. Svitolina said: “I mean, definitely very, very happy with the two weeks here and in New Zealand, as well, winning [the title].

“Of course, gutted to not make it through tonight, but yeah, of course it’s very difficult when you’re playing World No. 1, who is really on fire. Yeah, it was really complicated for me today, but yeah, I just want to take positives from the past weeks, the beginning of the year, and just carry them through for the season.

“To be fair, I thought I was returning today also quite well. I think my serve was not great at all. I think I was returning good, but then her second shot was unbelievable. She was returning well, quick, and then she had another punch coming, the second shot after her serve. So, I mean, that’s why she’s World No. 1.”

Svitolina also conceded that it wasn’t her best performance, but she knew that Sabalenka always piled on the pressure. “Well, I thought, a little bit, I could play better. I played good tennis. I wouldn’t say that the score shows what it was. I think I could still hold a couple times more on my serve,” she added.

“The serve was not as good as I wanted to be, so I could put a bit more pressure on her, because I feel like when she was starting to serve each time of the set, she’s always, you know, ahead. Okay, I was 2-0 up, but then she came back quick.

“So, yeah, I was not putting enough pressure on her with my serve, so of course, you know, when you play players like that, you don’t have too much time to waste. Of course we are in the late stages of the tournament, so, you know, everybody is super focused, super ready.

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“Yeah, I mean, these small things, I wish, you know, I could play better, but yeah, don’t want to too much focus on these things. You know, I think I played good tennis today and for the past three weeks. So I just want to take these positives and, yeah, move forward.”

But Svitolina is still taking the positives from her run to the semi-finals here. The Olympic bronze medallist will return to the top 10 for the first time since welcoming her first child in 2022 – and admitted that she couldn’t be sad about a result given what was happening in her home country.

The No. 12 seed said: “Well, of course I think I’m still disappointed that I didn’t go further, but I feel like I should not be allowed to really be sad. I have a great position. Firstly, not just as a person perspective, I have this amazing opportunity to play on centre court here, represent my country, to do it in a decent way, and to have opportunity, you know, to use my words and just be there for my people.

“I feel like for the past weeks, they have been really carrying me through with great vibes, with great emotions, and for me, this is something that really motivates me. You know, without any doubt, it’s something that when I wake up in the morning, I see of course terrifying news, but then I see people watching my matches. They write comments, and they are really – I think it’s like a big exchange of positive emotions.

“So I cannot complain, you know, that people really living horrible and terrifying life in Ukraine, so I should not be allowed to really be sad, because I’m a very, very lucky person.”