Moms Rewrite WTA Narratives in 2025
Returning mothers on the Hologic WTA Tour turned postpartum challenges into career highs, blending family pulls with on-court fire to claim titles and majors that echoed resilience across the circuit.
In 2025, the Hologic WTA Tour pulsed with stories of mothers reclaiming their edge, their returns laced with the raw pull of new parenthood against the circuit’s grind. From Abu Dhabi’s sun-baked baselines to Wimbledon’s dew-kissed grass, these players wove tactical tweaks and mental resets into deep runs that shifted perceptions of what’s possible after birth. Their breakthroughs—titles snatched, rankings vaulted—carried a quiet power, inspiring amid the roar of crowds and the hush of recovery rooms.
Bencic ignites swift comeback
Belinda Bencic, 28, stormed back 10 months after daughter Bella’s arrival, her game sharpened by focused drills that rebuilt her heavy topspin forehand. She captured the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open, the first WTA singles title for a mother since 2023, by pressuring Ashlyn Krueger with crosscourt backhands in the final that forced long rallies on the outdoor hard. That victory, her ninth career mark, set off a chain: quarterfinals at Indian Wells under swirling winds, semifinals at Wimbledon where her slice serves skimmed the grass, and a 10th title in Tokyo’s tight indoor confines.
Starting at No. 487 in the PIF WTA Rankings, she ended at No. 11, a WTA Comeback Player of the Year nominee whose path blended gratitude with grit.
During the trophy presentation in Abu Dhabi, Bencic lifted the silver with Bella cradled close, the desert air thick with cheers.
“We are so appreciative and blessed to have Bella in our lives,” Bencic said after beating Krueger. “And then also to be able to still do what I want to do. And then also, like, having the good results on top of that. So the emotions were about feeling incredibly grateful, blessed. And just a mini dream come true.”
Maria revives legacy on grass
Tatjana Maria, 38, etched her name into history at the HSBC Championships in London, qualifying through two rounds before stringing seven straight wins on Queen’s Club grass—the first WTA event there since 1973. Her low-slice backhands gripped the turf, pulling Karolina Muchova wide and disrupting Elena Rybakina’s flat power with body-targeted returns. The WTA 500 crown came against Amanda Anisimova in the final, Maria’s one–two pattern of drop shots into passing shots turning the slick surface into an ally, her first title at this level and the oldest champion since Serena Williams in 2020.
Her daughters watched from the front row, their presence a steady pulse against the week’s building tension, as she climbed from No. 89 to No. 45 by season’s end.
The grass swing’s quick skid favored her net rushes, volleys snatching points after serves kicked wide to the T, a shift that eased the isolation of constant travel.
“it’s such a special moment for all of us, like a family together,” Maria said after the win. “We won this trophy together, because we stick together and we are doing everything together. So it’s not only me that won this trophy today. it’s like my whole family won this trophy.”
Townsend conquers doubles peak
Taylor Townsend, 29 and mother to 4-year-old Adyn, whose US Open cheers went viral, reached No. 1 in doubles—the first mom to do so—starting with the Australian Open major alongside Katerina Siniakova. Her poaches at net and lobs over lobs controlled Melbourne’s mid-court skirmishes, adding titles in Dubai’s steamy air, Washington’s baseline duels, and Osaka’s evening cool. Singles surged too: a fourth-round US Open run, upsetting fifth-seeded Mirra Andreeva in Arthur Ashe Stadium with lefty inside-out forehands curving sharply on the hard courts.
Qualifying for the WTA Finals in Riyadh capped her dual climb, her aggressive 1–2 patterns signaling ambitions beyond doubles, even after falling to Barbora Krejcikova.
Adyn’s sideline energy cut through the tour’s fatigue, her game now eyeing top-10 singles spots with quicker footwork across wide alleys and deep returns.
“I’m exactly where I need to be,” Townsend said after the Krejcikova match. “...I’m playing the tennis I need to play to be inside the top 20, top 10, to win a Grand Slam.”
Naomi Osaka, 28, traced a winding path back after daughter Shai’s 2023 birth, her early Auckland final on outdoor hard courts hinting at flat groundstrokes regaining bite. A WTA 125 title in Saint-Malo’s spring clay rebuilt rhythm through extended rallies, but summer brought the real surge: a Montreal final with inside-in forehands under night lights, then a US Open semifinal—her first as a mom—capped by outlasting Karolina Muchova in quarterfinals via heavy topspin that absorbed Flushing’s humidity.
From No. 57 to No. 16, Osaka’s progress quieted the inner race against peers, her movement sharper on faster surfaces where down-the-line winners pierced defenses.
“I’m really inspired by all the moms on tour,” she shared post-Muchova, the weight of comparison lifting as her game found its post-maternity flow.
“I also have this thing of feeling like I’m not doing good enough, or I’m being left behind. And when all the moms came back and they did well kind of off the bat, I sort of felt like there was something wrong with me. I know that Belinda made the semis of Wimbledon, so I was just really ... I just really felt like I was losing a race in some sort of weird way. That was on my mind, and now I’m here and I feel like a weight’s been lifted off of my shoulders.”
Elina Svitolina, 31, anchored the year’s maternal surge with quarterfinals at the Australian Open—pushing champion Madison Keys in three sets on fast hard—and the French Open, her defensive crosscourt angles extending points on clay. She snared her 18th title at the WTA 250 Open Rouen Capfinances Metropole, five straight sets without a drop, her forehand slice and backhand down-the-lines dominating the indoor surface. Mother to 3-year-old Skaï, she posted a 35-15 record, landing at No. 14, her all-court steadiness a buffer against the tour’s emotional tides.
These arcs, from Bencic’s desert triumph to Svitolina’s clay command, signal a tour evolving with motherhood’s realities, promising deeper impacts as these players press forward into 2026.
