Things haven’t gone as planned for Marta Kostyuk. The Ukrainian, who reached the quarterfinals of the 2024 Australian Open, returned to Melbourne for another shot at having a smooth run. But fate had other plans. On Sunday, Kostyuk took the first set off her R1 opponent, Elsa Jacquemot, 7-6, but dropped the second set. As the battle stretched to a decider, she came out swinging, determined to take control. But at 5-6 (30-0), a nasty fall turned the tide…

The No. 20 seed rolled her ankle and had to call for the physio.

Even then, Kostyuk refused to surrender. She forced a third-set tiebreak, fighting through the pain in a thrilling display of resilience. But Jacquemot edged out in a marathon finish.

The French star prevailed 6-7(4), 7-6(4), 7-6(7) in the first-ever triple-tiebreak match at the Australian Open (just the fifth triple-tiebreak Grand Slam match) in the Open Era. The gripping battle stretched over 3 hours and 31 minutes, the longest match of this year’s tournament so far.

On the other hand, Marta Kostyuk kicked off 2026 in blazing form, taking down three Top 10 players and reaching the Brisbane final in the first week of the year. Her pre-season strength training had clearly paid off, and she told reporters she was aiming for a Top 10 finish!

After a packed 22-tournament run in 2025, her team decided she needed a longer recharge before the new season.

“It was a team decision,” Kostyuk said before Brisbane. “We were like, ‘OK, we want some longevity, and we want me to be mentally healthy.’”

Once Kostyuk returned to court and the gym, she went full throttle. Training with fitness coach Jolanta Rusin for a third straight pre-season, she focused on explosive movements instead of heavy lifting. Rusin’s sessions mixed speed, endurance, and precision through tough eccentric and isometric drills.

“I needed two years of work so my body can handle what we are doing right now,” Kostyuk said. “And it’s not like everyone is going to see my strength or my power in the first week of the year. It’s something that we have just started building up, and it’s going to come in time.”

And while her Australian Open campaign didn’t go her way, her opponent didn’t hesitate to tip her hat to her after the match.

Marta Kostyuk’s opponent drops kind words after brutal win

The 60th-ranked player staged a wild comeback, fighting from a set and 5-3 down to score the win. She even saved a match point while serving down 6-5 in the second set before turning things around. The Ukrainian pushed hard to level the contest and force a deciding tiebreak, but Jacquemot held firm.

“It was a crazy match,” Jacquemot told reporters. “Marta played so good. So I’m very happy to win this match.”

When the pressure peaked, Jacquemot unleashed two fearless forehands to grab a match point. The final rally stretched on until Marta Kostyuk’s drop shot landed in the net, sealing the Frenchwoman’s victory.

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“We played for more than three hours, and [Kostyuk is] a player that really loves to run,” the French star said. “I really need to recover because it was a very long match.”

Jacquemot moves into Round 2 to face Yulia Putintseva, who already rolled out the cheekiest celebration of the tournament after defeating Beatriz Haddad Maia. Kostyuk, meanwhile, awaits news on her ankle.