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In an Instagram post on March 11, Tsvetana Pironkova made public her intention to return to professional tennis for the first time since 2017. Just a week later, the WTA tour announced the first of many suspensions due to the Covid pandemic. 19. Talk about time.
But for Pironkova, her return had something bigger and better in store. Playing in her first tournament in more than three years after becoming a mother in 2018, the Bulgarian has stormed into the quarterfinals of this US Open. Pironkova is one of three moms in the women’s singles round of 16 in New York, the first in any Grand Slam, along with American Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka of Belarus.
But while 23-time Major Williams champion and two-time Australian Open winner Azarenka have done deep runs in big tournaments several times in their long careers, many of them after becoming mothers, Pironkova, 32, is one of eight who participated for the first time. quarterfinals at the US Open. That makes their comeback story even more remarkable.
Having reached her career-high ranking of 31 in 2010, Pironkova used the protected ranking of 123 (which the WTA provides to players returning from maternity leave) to enter the main draw at Flushing Meadows. Before this edition, the only time she made it to the fourth round of the US Open was in 2012, and her best Slam show was a Wimbledon semi-final 10 years ago. Her only WTA title to date remains the 2014 Sydney International triumph.
Tennis also took a back seat during his three-year absence from the game. In addition to raising her son Alexander, Pironkova launched her own track and field brand. Just this year she began to prepare for the “unknowns” of returning to the sport as a new mother. And yet, she recorded straight-set wins in her first three matches last week, including against two-time Grand Slam champion Garbine Muguruza in the second round.
“Once you become a mother, you don’t magically lose your ability to play,” Pironkova said on the WTA website after her first round win. “If you want to do it, I don’t think there’s anything that can stop you from doing it.”
As if that hadn’t stopped Williams, Pironkova’s quarterfinal opponent, from continuing her quest for a record 24 major titles. She’s on the right track so far, doling out some of her signature superlative game, though she’s occasionally dropped a few seats. But even on the nearly empty courts this year, she has a vocal supporter from the stands, her three-year-old daughter Olympia.
Azarenka and her four-year-old son, Leo, are also seen watching the action from the stands at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Azarenka, 31, is chasing her first major since 2013, and has both the form and the self-confidence behind her after taking her first title since 2016 at the Western & Southern Open in the lead up to the US Open. She believes that motherhood has made her a better tennis player.
“You become a different person. You don’t focus so much on yourself anymore; your focus is primarily on your child. And I guess that’s good. I am also much more organized. Mentally, I also have more stamina. Physically, I know my body better, “he told a press conference.
From nine mothers in the singles draw when the tournament began, we are down to three. And with a duel between Williams and Pironkova, we are guaranteed at least one mother among the last four women standing.
