Ukrainian Tennis Player's Plea for Children and Women at Australian Open

MELBOURNE, Australia— Oleksandra Oliynykova exceeded expectations in her maiden Grand Slam main-draw match — but she might have left a deeper impression in her news conference. The Ukrainian entered the media room after a 7-6(6), 6-1 defeat to defending champion Madison Keys wearing a T-shirt that read: “I need your help to protect Ukrainian children and women, but I can’t talk about it here.” “I know how people can help to protect Ukrainians, to protect them against these drones, but we will need to speak outside about this,” she said. Since 2024, Russia has used drones extensively in Ukraine, which it invaded in 2022. It has targeted Oliynykova’s home city Kyiv in recent days, leading to civilian deaths, injuries and sustained power outages across Ukraine’s capital. “In my apartment, I have no electricity, no water, no heat,” Oliynykova said. She recalled bombs striking buildings down the road from her, rattling her own, the night before she left Ukraine to travel to Melbourne for the Australian Open. Oliynykova maintains a website to receive donations to a Ukrainian drone unit in which her father serves, as reported by Bounces. “Among those who defend Ukraine is my father. He serves in the 412th Separate Brigade of Unmanned Systems “NEMESIS”, one of the most advanced drone units in the Ukrainian Defence Forces,” a bio on the website reads. “His combat team works every day to stop Russian attacks and protect Ukrainian cities and villages. [The website] is how I connect my tennis world with his frontline reality. Together with friends and supporters, we raise funds for mission-critical equipment that helps his unit see further, react faster, and come home alive.” Oliynykova has carried a flag representing the unit to other Grand Slam tournaments, and cited her father as her biggest inspiration in her news conference. “After he joined the military, I did progress 200 positions [in the rankings]… Because I know it was his dream to see me on this court,” she said. The 25-year-old, who had to ask where to sit on her way into the interview room, was also proud of her unconventional, brave performance against Keys on Rod Laver Arena. She led the opening set 4-0, before extending Keys to a tense tiebreak in which Oliynykova led 6-4 before the American produced four impeccable points to snatch it away. Oliynykova’s slices and moonballs unsettled the American, who said in her own news conference that the last time she played an opponent with such command over the moonball tactic was in “12-and-unders.” “They’re so high, and they’re so deep,” Keys said of Oliynykova’s topspin-loaded skyers. Even when it came to the missed opportunities Oliynykova saw go by in the first set, she saw the bright side. She said she may have tried to hit too big a first serve at 6-4 up in the tiebreak, which missed and forced her to hit a slower second that Keys punished for a winner. “It’s not always about winning or losing,” Oliynykova said, in a sentiment rarely shared by the professional elite. “I think it’s not good in the sport that we are putting too much pressure on the athlete depending only the results, because when you are playing great tennis, you are playing against great opponents, you see high sportsmanship from both sides, you see very kind fans who is cheering for both.” She extended the sentiment to the wider sporting world. “I’m not watching a lot of sport,” she said. “I don’t watch a lot of tennis, actually… Every competition is important, every opportunity to say something about Ukraine. It’s sad, because this war is very long, and I think people are losing attention after so many years.” Her father, however, was certainly watching. “He told me that it was amazing match, he just texted me, and yeah, I made his dream come true in such a situation,” Oliynykova said. “What could be more? What could be biggest motivation? I cannot imagine this.”