Returning to tennis after becoming a mother, by Elina Svitolina

Carlos Navarro | 7 Aug 2024 | 15.52

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It is a topic of conversation that is quite common within the women's circuit. For better or for worse, motherhood is a possible crucial part of a woman's life, and there are many WTA players who have paused their professional activities to give birth and become mothers of a precious child. It is also common for many of these tennis players to return to the courts some time later: the itch has not been completely satisfied, they feel fully competitive, and they conceive of tennis in a different way, with greater maturity and the feeling of giving a "second life" to their career.

Currently, the group of players who have already become mothers is growing. Naomi Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki... and among them, possibly the one who best and quickest returned to a sensational level after her motherhood: Elina Svitolina. The Ukrainian, who added the invasion of Russia to her personal circumstances, rose to the occasion last year and has maintained a fierce pace after giving birth to Skaï, whom she has taken care of for several weeks of the year, as has her husband and fellow tennis player Gaël Monfils. But, is there a secret to returning to your best level after the mark that motherhood leaves on you? Is it possible to make a strong comeback? She herself, after winning her debut match at WTA Toronto 2024, answers this question in a very interesting press conference.

"Returning to my best form was a process of months and months. The feelings you experience during a match are very different from those in training: you may have felt very good during practice, but when you go to play a big tournament, there is a lot of stress and pressure, the emotions are completely different.

For me, that was the toughest part. I felt very good training, but I needed some time to stay focused from start to finish of the match. We play at a very high level, every player is tough, and you need to maintain concentration for two or three hours. That was the biggest challenge for me. Also, footwork is very important, but there comes a moment when you feel that everything clicks and you play much better, you stop thinking about all that and you think you are just another player looking, like all others, to win".

It is no wonder, then, that Elina describes all the mothers on the circuit as "a great inspiration". She confesses that she frequently talks with names like Osaka, Kerber, or Wozniacki, having "small conversations" about their children, emphasizing how useful it is to connect with tennis players who have experienced the same as her. "Each person has a different story, but it's great to see that we are motivated and push each other. Everything we do is a great inspiration, not just for tennis, but for sports in general. I feel that women have many more options to do all this nowadays. We try to motivate women to come back and keep paving their way".

CHANGES IN HER TEAM AND AFTER COMPETING IN THE OLYMPIC GAMES

It's a special moment in the season for Svitolina: she was able to win the title here seven years ago in Toronto, and she is aware of the huge Ukrainian community living in the North American city. "I love playing here. It's amazing that seven years have passed, it feels like only a couple (laughs). Coming here after the Games is a challenge, but the fact that many fans come to see you and the atmosphere is amazing makes that transition much easier. I am very grateful to the Canadian government for everything they have done to help Ukrainian refugees".

Svitolina concluded her press conference confirming the return of an old acquaintance. It is Andrew Bettles, former coach of the Ukrainian, who has returned to be part of her team, confirmed by herself: "We are trying again (laughs). It is very different from when we worked together three or four years ago, but we have great memories. We spent five years full of success, so when I stopped working with my former coach, it was an easy decision. It's not easy to make a change in the middle of the year, but I had a conversation with Andy and we decided to give it another try". Her next challenge, by the way, is full of symbolism: a Ukrainian derby against Marta Kostyuk. Quite something.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Regresar al tenis tras ser madre, por Elina Svitolina