For women, the road to motherhood is a transforming and awe-inspiring experience. But, the prospect of returning to athletic activity after childbirth can be challenging for any sportswoman. Tennis icons like Serena Williams, Kim Clijsters, Margaret Court, Sania Mirza, and Victoria Azarenka are just a few of a long list of women who are proving they can do it all. A new mom, Elina Svitolina also has joined the list now.

Svitolina won the WTA Finals in 2018 and reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2019. In May 2022, Svitolina announced that she was pregnant. She could have taken a back seat after enjoying her success and reaching no.3 in the WTA rankings, but she had other plans. She wanted to fulfill her desires before she completely retired. The Ukrainian star and her husband, Gael Monfils, welcomed their daughter, Skai, on October 15, 2022.

Challenges the Ukrainian star Elina Svitolina faced during pregnancy

In a recent press conference at Roland Garros, Svitolina spoke about feeling “awful when you’re pregnant, especially the last months”. She felt she was lucky because she was expecting the worst, especially because during her pregnancy she did not exercise at all. Women experience a lot of anxiety and stress related to the well-being of their unborn child, the physical changes they undergo, and the anticipation of becoming a mother. 

This reminded the Ukrainian star about the similar struggle Serena Williams had during her daughter Olympia’s birth. Serena was bedridden for six weeks from a series of complications, including a pulmonary embolism that led to multiple surgeries, after her daughter was delivered by emergency c-section. The former world no.1 suffered another pulmonary embolism after giving birth, leaving her bedridden for six weeks and delaying her return to training.

Once she returned, she finished as a runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2018 and 2019.  The former world no. 1 won her only WTA title since her daughter’s birth at the Auckland Open in January 2020. She also reached four Grand Slam finals.

This shows how well Serena could strike a balance between motherhood and her career. Inspired by Serena Elina mentioned how these instances made her get back stronger both on and off-court.

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Likewise, when Elina made her comeback to professional tennis, she proved her strength by appearing in seven tournaments. At Saint-Malo’s WTA 125 tournament, she reached the semifinals, and she finally won the Internationaux de Strasbourg. Now, the Ukrainian has registered her first win in a Grand Slam on the 2023 WTA Tour and has begun the Roland Garros on a good note.

Svitolina following in Serena Williams’ footsteps

Elina’s return to winning ways recalls Serena Williams’ struggles and success after her daughter Olympia was born. On Monday at Roland Garros, she beat former semi-finalist Martina Trevisan 6-2, 6-2 in what was her first Grand Slam event since the 2022 Australian Open. The 28-year-old so far has 17 titles to her name. This made a good start for her quest to add to the tally.

When Elina was asked how she felt now, she said “I feel like I’m as strong as I was before, maybe even stronger, because I feel that I can handle the work that I do off the court, and match by match I’m getting better. Also mentally, because mental can influence your physicality, as well.”

She will face Australian Storm Sanders in the second round of the tournament. Can she reach the latter stages of the clay court Major? Let us know in the comments.

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