Madrid champion Kostyuk arrived on court boosted by a 16-match winning streak on clay, whereas Rome champion Svitolina was riding a wave of 10 consecutive clay-court victories. Something had to give and it was fitting this duel went to a deciding set.
After splitting the first two chapters, the decider began with five successive breaks of serve as Kostyuk went into the sitdown with a 3-2 lead.
From that moment the 23-year-old put her foot to the metal to rattle through another three games and into the final four.
As she began to address the crowd, her emotions came to the surface and once she’d composed herself she dedicated the victory to her country.