Upbeat Marta Kostyuk says crowd support the highlight of her run to Roland Garros semi-finals

[p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/kostyuk-marta/8CZqQdSa/"]Kostyuk[/a]'s [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/tennis/andreeva-m-lI6fOOat/kostyuk-m-8CZqQdSa/?mid=tMeHmEwK"]6-1, 6-3[/a] semi-final defeat ended a 17-match winning run ‌on clay this season, a stretch that included a Madrid Open ‌title and a victory over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/andreeva-mirra/lI6fOOat/"]Andreeva[/a] in the final.[/p][p]"[b]For sure, my streak. I take ‌it with me to the grave[/b]," Kostyuk told reporters with a ‌smile.[/p][p]"[b]Very happy with my claycourt season, just one loss. I would never believe it if someone told me this a couple of months ago[/b]."[/p][p]The 15th seed struggled to find her ‌rhythm against a relentless Andreeva, who reached her ⁠maiden Grand Slam final, but refused ‌to dwell on the defeat.[/p][p]"[b]Everything that could go her way went her way. Everything ​that could not go my way didn't go my way[/b]," Kostyuk said.[/p][p]"[b]I've had enough tough days, bad days to know that they ​end. It's not the worst thing in the world to lose a match, whatever the stage is[/b]."[/p][embed guid="a901d732-070c-4d27-9be6-14b5e56330bc" url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGBsR8M7ZlE" social-type="youtube" /][p]The loss denied her a first Grand Slam final, ⁠but Kostyuk said the emotional ​high point of her fortnight came after her quarter-final victory against fellow Ukrainian [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/monfils-elina/jyngIesG/"]Elina Svitolina[/a], when the Roland Garros crowd responded warmly to her efforts to keep attention focused on Ukraine more than four years after Russia's full-scale invasion.[/p][p]"[b]I ‌will never forget the ovations that I received after my match in the quarter-finals[/b]," she said.[/p][p][b]"This is something I will carry with me forever and I will never believe anyone who is at the world stage of this sport saying that they have zero influence[/b].[/p][p]"[b]If you want to, you can do anything. This was proof for me[/b]."[/p][p]Kostyuk, who has repeatedly spoken out about the war and criticised Russian players, said those moments meant as much to her as her breakthrough run to a first semi-final at a ‌major.[/p][p]"[b]I'm obviously very happy that I made it to the semi-finals, but I ​feel like this is the highlight of my tournament[/b]," she said ‌of the crowd support.[/p][p]The 23-year-old also credited years of therapy and self-reflection for helping transform both her tennis and her outlook on life.[/p][embed guid="98aa3518-6411-4457-81cd-8eaf36129e23" url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIMja4zoobo" social-type="youtube" /][p]"[b]When the full-scale war started, I realised that I needed to change my perspective on life because it's clearly not just tennis[/b]," she said.[/p][p]"[b]The battles ⁠that I've won against myself and ⁠in my head, Grand Slams ‌are nothing compared to it. Playing tennis is very easy[/b]."[/p]