Belarusian Victoria Azarenka left Court One to a chorus of boos after losing a dramatic fourth-round contest to Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina.
The crowd had been overwhelmingly behind Svitolina throughout and produced a deafening roar when she clinched a 2-6 6-4 7-6 (9) victory.
The former world number three had been booed at the French Open for refusing to shake hands with Russian and Belarusian opponents but here it was Azarenka, who put her hand up to acknowledge Svitolina before leaving the court, that received loud jeers.
It was unclear whether the fans thought it was she who had snubbed her opponent and Azarenka gave a long, lingering stare before banging her fists together as she walked off.
Svitolina only returned to the tour in April following the birth of daughter Skai in October, and she beamed as she said in her on-court interview: “After giving birth to our daughter, this is the second fabulous moment in my life.
“It was a really tough match. When I was 0-2 down in the second set I heard you guys cheering for me and I almost wanted to cry. I was really struggling and I really wanted to win today. You guys gave me so much strength today.”
Svitolina also drew strength from thinking of the plight of her stricken homeland, saying: “I was thinking back home there are lots of people that are watching and cheering for me, I know how much it means for them.
“Any moments that they can share of happiness. I was thinking there is tough times in Ukraine and I’m here playing in front of you guys. I cannot complain, I just have to fight. And here I am, I won the match.”
These were the final two mothers left in the singles draw but there was certainly no maternal bond here.
Svitolina spoke before the contest about her “big motivation” to beat Azarenka “for my country”, and the pair did not even look at each other at the coin toss ahead of what was the first clash between Ukrainian and Russian or Belarusian players since the beginning of the war and the lifting of last year’s ban.
Svitolina has made a very impressive return to the sport, including a run to the quarter-finals of the French Open, where three times she faced Russian or Belarusian players.
A couple of small Ukraine flags being waved as the players walked out onto Court One were the only initial indication of the political tension behind this contest.
But it quickly became clear the crowd were firmly behind Svitolina and in the fourth game a loud cry of Slava Ukraini – glory to Ukraine – was heard and applauded by sections of fans.
On the court, things were not going so well for Svitolina, who in her time away from the sport took an active role in leading fundraising efforts for Ukraine, including meeting with president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
She had lost all five of her previous matches against Azarenka and, although most of the games were close, it was the Belarusian largely coming out on top.
Svitolina was staring at a swift defeat when she trailed 2-0 in the second set but the former world number three has returned to the tour with a much more aggressive mindset and she levelled things up before pushing to try to force a decider.
The 28-year-old has spoken warmly about the support her country has received from the UK, with Wimbledon funding accommodation and training facilities, and she must have felt as if she was playing at home.
A huge roar greeted the arrival of a set point, then an equally big groan when she shanked a forehand, but a second chance arrived and Svitolina, a semi-finalist here back in 2019, converted.
At 3-0 up in the deciding set, the Ukrainian looked to be on her way to victory but back came Azarenka and the light was fading fast as they approached the denouement.
Svitolina then fought back from 4-7 in a tense deciding tie-break, finally clinching it 11-9 on her second match point and dropping to the turf in delight.
On a lighter note, the 28-year-old revealed ahead of the match that her Wimbledon run meant she had to give away tickets to the Harry Styles concert she had planned to attend.
“I hope Harry is watching,” she said. “I’m a big fan of his.”
Rublev claws back to down Auger-Aliassime in Madrid Open final
Andrey Rublev clinched his first Madrid Open title by coming from behind to defeat Felix Auger-Aliassime 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 on Sunday.
The 26-year-old went the distance to earn his second title at this level against Auger-Aliassime, a first-time Masters 1000 finalist.
After losing his serve in the first game of the match, Rublev shook off his early nerves to come back in the second. In a tight third set, Rublev dictated the game with his first serve, using it to drag him to the win.
Rublev came into the Madrid Open on the back of a four-match losing streak but dug deep to get his sixth ATP Tour clay-court title, earning his biggest win of the season after two hours and 47 minutes.
Data Debrief: Rublev closing in on big hitters
Since the start of the 2020 season, only Stefanos Tsitsipas (three) has won more ATP Masters 1000 events on clay than Rublev (two), who is now level with Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz over that span.
Rublev (221) only trails Daniil Medvedev (223) for ATP match wins since the start of the 2020 season, while holding a win percentage of 72% (221-86) over that span.
'It can only get better' - Sabalenka leaving Madrid Open 'with positive thoughts' despite Swiatek defeat
Aryna Sabalenka is encouraged by her run to the Madrid Open final and feels her performance levels "can only get better", despite defeat by Iga Swiatek.
In a repeat of last year's showpiece, the world number two went down 7-5 4-6 7-6 (9-7) in a thrilling encounter with the Pole, who avenged her loss from 12 months ago.
Sabalenka, who saw three championship points go begging, narrowly missed out on becoming only the second woman to win three titles in Madrid after Petra Kvitova.
Nevertheless, the reigning Australian Open champion reached her first final since triumphing in Melbourne, while extending her winning streak in the Spanish capital to 11 matches before defeat to the world number one.
"I really want to see many more finals against [Swiatek]. I want to see more wins than losses," she said. "But I really hope that we'll be able to keep the level or increase the level every year.
"I'm happy with the level I played, with the effort I put into this match and into this week. I'm leaving Madrid with positive thoughts.
"Probably when I broke [Swiatek] in the third set, I should have been more focused on my serve. But at the same time, it's not like I double-faulted; she played great tennis, and she broke me back.
"I think after the Australian Open, I struggled for a couple of months. It's been intense. I'm super happy that, here in Madrid, I was able to bring it all together and be able to get back to my level. It can only get better from now on."
Swiatek was not to be denied a third title of the season - a tally only matched by Elena Rybakina - and she has now won each of her last seven WTA Tour-level finals since losing out to Sabalenka in Madrid last year.
The three-time French Open champion has also now triumphed in every European clay court tournament at WTA 500 level or higher.
"When I look back in maybe a few years, it will mean a lot," the Pole said. "But for now, I'm just happy that I won this tournament anyway. It doesn't matter to me if I won it before or not. I try to win each tournament that I play.
"I think it was more about who was going to be less stressed and who was going to be able to play with more freedom.
"For most of the match, I felt like some decisions [from her] were pretty courageous. I was sometimes a little bit back. So, in the end, I just wanted not to do that and to also be courageous.
"I don't know what made a difference. I think we both deserved to win; I think it was only about those little points in the tiebreaker."
Swiatek topples Sabalenka in thrilling Madrid Open final
Iga Swiatek clinched the Madrid Open title after downing defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in a gruelling final.
In a rematch of last year's final, the top two players in the world did battle in thrilling fashion on Saturday, with Swiatek eventually prevailing 7-5 4-6 7-6 (9-7) after three hours and 14 minutes on court.
It marked Swiatek's first title in Madrid, and the Pole had to do it the hard way, saving three championship points before finally coming out on top in the tie-break, which she sealed with her second championship point when Sabalenka sent a backhand long.
This victory means Swiatek, who has won the French Open on three occasions, has now won every European clay court tournament at WTA 500 level or higher.
It was also Swiatek's seventh victory over Sabalenka, from what was their 10th meeting.
Data Debrief: Clay queen Swiatek rolls on
Swiatek has now won her past seven WTA Tour-level finals, since the defeat to Sabalenka in Madrid last season, while only Elena Rybakina can match her haul of three titles so far in 2024.
This was the longest singles final of the year so far on the WTA Tour, while it was the fourth show-piece match in a WTA 1000 event to be decided by a third set tie-break.
Since the format’s introduction in 2009, only Serena Williams (13) and Victoria Azarenka (10) have more WTA 1000 titles than Swiatek, whose tally of nine equals the efforts of Simona Halep and Petra Kvitova.
Meanwhile, of players to have made at least 10 appearances at clay court tournaments, only Chris Evert, Margaret Court and Steffi Graf have a higher ratio of victories in the Open Era than Swiatek (8/18).
In fact, Swiatek has now claimed a tournament victory in 31 per cent (9/29) of the WTA 1000 main draws she has entered, the highest percentage of any player since the format’s introduction in 2009.
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