Elina Svitolina will not be offering a handshake to Victoria Azarenka following Wimbledon draw

A brief scroll of Elina Svitolina’s Instagram account reveals three inspiring sides to the Ukrainian player.

First, we see a picture of her alongside president Volodymyr Zelensky wearing a ‘glory to Ukraine’ shirt.

Next, there is a picture of Svitolina holding the tiny hand of her nine-month-old baby Skai and husband Gael Monfils, the French player who has been as high as world No 6.

And more recently there is a shot of Svitolina in action at the All England Club this week with a caption trying to flog her tickets to a Harry Styles concert in Vienna.

She has better things to do on Sunday. Svitolina is flying the flag for her war-torn nation in a week where three Ukrainian women made the third round of Wimbledon for the first time. Lesia Tsurenko and Marta Kostyuk are also having good weeks.

The Ukrainian will play against Belarusian Victoria Azarenka (pictured), the first time a draw of its kind will have happened at Wimbledon since Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine 

It comes after Svitolina (bottom) refused to shake Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka’s (top) hand at the French Open earlier this year  

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On Sunday she will play Belarusian Victoria Azarenka, which will be the first time at Wimbledon a Ukrainian has faced a player from an aggressor nation since Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion, which began 500 days ago on Saturday.

Parisian crowds booed Svitolina at the French Open when she refused to shake hands with Belarusian world No 2 Aryna Sabalenka and the Ukrainian said she was baffled by the reaction and accused her opponent of adding fuel to the fire by offering her hand at the net.

Fellow Russian player Daria Kasatkina, who has held a staunch anti-Putin stance, simply offered a thumbs up and did not offer her hand in the previous round, which Svitolina admitted she respected.

But it remains to be seen whether spectators will jeer the Belarusian Azarenka on Sunday. The feeling is that any jeers would be more likely on an outer court, given the corporate nature of most with big-money tickets to show courts. Their match will be last on Court No1.

‘Every day I take an opportunity to fight for my country,’ said Svitolina, who is a wildcard at this tournament after her ranking plummeted with her pregnancy hiatus.

‘For me it’s a big motivation (the match) — firstly I think for my country. It’s just another match, but in a way, a lot of Ukrainians will be watching and supporting me. I will put the fighting spirit on and just really fight for every single point.’

Tsurenko is another showing the Ukrainian fighting spirit here. She advanced to the fourth round on Friday by edging a third-set tiebreak 20-18 against Ana Bogdan, saving five match points along the way.

It was a controversial moment in the competition with Svitolina snubbing her opponent but shaking the hand of the chair umpire

The All England Club are paying for accomodation for Ukrainian players at Wimbledon this year as well as offering them facilities to train on during the grass season

The All England Club are helping Ukrainians at Wimbledon this year by paying for players’ accommodation costs during the tournament and offering them facilities to train during the grass-court season.

Away from the courts, the Club have invited 1,000 refugees to join them for a day at Wimbledon with free tickets, transport and a meal. One pound from every ticket goes to Ukrainian relief charities, with more than £500,000 set to be raised from that.

Svitolina wanted to delay her return giving birth but after practising with her team and also Monfils’ coaches, she was urged to ramp up her comeback. ‘It might sound arrogant, but I will always have high expectations for myself,’ she added. ‘Each time I play the tournament, I want to win it.’

‘You know, shoot for the moon and you might land in the stars.’

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