Mum Bencic hoping to follow Aussie trailblazers

Perth Now

9 hours ago

The odds are against Belinda Bencic winning the Wimbledon women's singles, and not just because she is 35th in the rankings and faces the impressive seventh-seed Mirra Andreeva in the quarter-finals.
She is also a mother, and only three mums have won a grand slam in the Open era. Even Serena Williams cold not do it, though she did reach four finals.
Of the trio two are Australians: Margaret Court, who won the Australian, French and US Opens in 1973, and Evonne Goolagong Cawley whose 1980 Wimbledon crown came after she had given birth to daughter Kelly.
The only player to do it since is Belgian Kim Clijsters, who triumphed in the US Open in 2009.
Bencic, the Tokyo Olympic champion, gave birth to Bella in April 2024, which ruled her out of last year's Wimbledon.
Returning as a mum appears to have helped as the 28-year-old had never reached a quarter-final here before, but has now done so, 11 years after her All England Club debut.
She beat Russian 18th-seed Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 on Monday. Victory came with a break point having squandered five match points when serving at 5-3.
Bencic said she was surprised how quickly she has found form since coming back on the tour, returning earlier than anticipated as felt so good on the practice court.
"I think it's a result of the work we put in and also the mindset that I have now. I still want to win very badly."
Bencic said travelling with a child on tour is still relatively easy while Bella is so young, but added: "I'm juggling it like every mum does. So, props to the mums."
She subsequently clarified: "I'm really lucky I have a great support from all my family, especially my husband. I didn't want to say just mums who juggle, but also dads and parents in general. I want to make that clear."
That juggling, she said, has meant learning to compromise, not easy for an elite athlete.
"You have to be really prepared for not being able to do everything perfectly.You just have to let some things go. You have to compromise.
"I don't practice as much as I used to. I still try to do the best on the practice court and on the match court. I feel like I am more productive because I have less time.
"Then it's also really nice to spend time off the court and pretend that it's the real life, try to make the day as normal as possible and not hang out on-site all the time."
Bencic's best result at a grand slam was reaching the 2019 US Open semi-finals.
Andreeva powered her way into her first Wimbledon quarter-final with a 6-2 6-3 win over American 10th seed Emma Navarro , becoming the youngest player in the last eight of the women's singles since 2005.
The 18-year-old looked at home on Centre Court, using her booming serve and power from the baseline to match the feat of compatriot Maria Sharapova in 2005 at the exact same age - 18 years and 62 days at the start of the tournament.
Another Russian, Daria Kasatkina's conqueror Liudmila Samsonova, reached her first grand slam quarter-final by beating Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 7-5 7-5.
Samsonova, who has yet to drop a set this tournament, now meets former world No.1 Iga Swiatek. The Pole beat Dane Clara Tauson 6-4 6-1 in 65 minutes to reach her second Wimbledon quarter-final.