Tennis players are like everyone else in one way. When players like them start to have success, they get jealous. No one articulates that better than Ukrainian player Marta Kostyuk.

Marta Kostyuk, who is the approximately same age as the two US Open semifinalists,  talked about watching Emma Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez playing the US Open final. Kostyuk said:

I have to be honest, it was a bit rough for me to watch both of their runs (Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez). I want to be where they are. I am sure it’s going to happen, I didn’t feel nice looking at them playing finals (laughs). I realized that I can do the same.

It was very, very inspirational because it gave me strength and I realized that I can do the same thing, so this is the thing they gave me, which I’m very thankful for, because leading something is never easy, when you are the first it’s always extra pressure

Marta Kostyuk was a young tennis phenom. In 2015, at just age 15, she reached the third round of the Australian Open, becoming the youngest player to achieve that feat in almost 25 years.

Kostyuk reached the fourth round at the 2021 French Open, where she lost to Iga Swiatek. As she develops her game, she is certain to win big titles. She has a great future, whether that’s driven by inspiration or jealousy.