Ons Jabeur didn’t waste any time to dial up the expectations. “I’m very happy for her because this is something I want to have, a family,” Jabeur said. “I hope that she will change her mind and come back in one or two years like Caroline Wozniacki.”
Barty, 27, went into retirement not long after she won the Australian Open last year. Former No. 1 Wozniacki, a mother of two, announced her comeback in a magazine article last month. The 32-year-old, who retired from the sport in January 2020, is gearing up for an August return. She was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and the auto-immune disease in October 2018, but she played through it.
Sabalenka argued that moms returning to the Tour gave her hope. “It must be really tough to balance a kid and play tennis. For me, all my focus is on tennis,” she said. “It gives me belief, if one day I want to be a mom, that I still have chances to come back and play tennis.”
There have been only three mothers to win majors in the Open Era – Margaret Court (Australian, French and US Opens of 1973), Evonne Goolagong Cawley (Wimbledon 1980) and Kim Clijsters (US Open 2009 and 2010).
Last year, Tatjana Maria, a mother of two girls, aged nine and one, made the Wimbledon semifinals at 35 years of age. Czech Barbora Strycova, the 2019 Wimbledon singles semifinalist, who gave birth to son Vincent in October 2021, is in the singles and doubles draw this year. Elina Svitolina, who is married to French pro Gael Monfils, is perhaps the mom story of the year.
“Ashleigh (Barty) has everything to come back. She’s very talented,” Sabalenka said. “She has already made it once. If she decides to come back to tennis, she’s going to do well.”
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