Andy Roddick Reminds Fans of the OG Inspiration Kim Clijsters to WTA Stars Who Desire to Pursue Glory Post Pregnancy

It was the year 2009. Belgium tennis star, Kim Clijsters, was making a comeback from retirement after giving birth. Known as the mother of all comebacks, she won the 2009 US Open title, defeating Caroline Wozniacki in the summit clash. It was a surreal moment for the new mother. Subsequently, Clijsters went on to win two more majors to make it four Grand Slam victories in her illustrious career. Recently, Andy Roddick highlighted her example while talking about the comeback of mothers on the WTA Tour.

In the last few years, there have been growing examples of mothers who have made a return to tennis, like Naomi Osaka and Elina Svitolina. Here’s what Roddick had to say about them.

Andy Roddick pays tribute to Kim Clijsters and comeback mothers

Despite years since retirement, Andy Roddick is actively involved in tennis affairs still. The American legend can be often seen talking about trending topics in the tennis world. The comeback of mothers was one such topic that the former World Number 1 mentioned.

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In the latest episode of the ‘Served with Andy Roddick’ podcast, he said, “We cannot talk about these comebacks in the mothers involved in taking maternity leave without referencing Kim Clijsters and the fact that how inspirational is it to win three out of the four majors after becoming a mother.”

Further, he went on to add, “Though Kim’s one of the best people, I love her to death, but setting that stage to make, it’s becoming normal now. It used to be an exception and now, oh great, I’ll see you after you have your shower. You know, whether it’s Kerber, Osaka, Wozniacki coming back, Svitolina coming back. I mean, it’s the norm now and big, big names, which is awesome.”

A few months ago, comeback mom Elina Svitolina opened up about the reason for an increasing number of mothers who are returning to the sport. A big factor in this was WTA’s hike in pay.

Elina Svitolina points out an important change for mothers

The Ukrainian tennis star highlighted an important chapter in WTA50 Sports Sciences and Medicine History. It implemented rules to allow women to have kids and participate in the sport, along with a pay hike.

She went on to reveal, “There is life after the child. Now we have more opportunities to have more people with us who are taking care of your child.”

It is heartening to see the comeback of mothers, with all their dedication and zeal. Rightly pointed out by Roddick, the number of mothers making a comeback is only set to grow as examples of the likes of Clijsters and Osaka motivate them.

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