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Emotional win for Ukrainian battler Elina

- Matthew Dunn

ELINA SVITOLINA captured the hearts of an adopted nation with a brave victory dedicated to her compatriots in Ukraine.

The Wimbledon wild card, being put up for the tournament by the club in recognition of the problems currently faced back home, turned No.1 Court metaphorically blue and yellow with her indefatigable spirit as the central character in some rare sporting theatre.

Her opponent, Victoria Azarenka, from Belarus, had been banned by the club last year as Wimbledon stood alone in its stance against Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

And she gestured angrily at the crowd, who booed her from the court after toiling for 2hr 46min before losing 2-6 6-4 7-6.