Victoria Azarenka Credits Serena Williams and Herself as Pioneers in Shattering the Stereotype Surrounding Tennis Moms

Tennis moms are thriving and striving, giving tough competition to the younger generation with their passion for the sport. While there are a lot of young moms in the game now, including Naomi Osaka and Elina Svitolina, for moms like Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka, things were not the same. Azarenka recently opened up about how she and Williams broke the stereotype and changed the game of tennis as mothers.

Both were among those names who decided to come back to tennis after embracing motherhood and trying to balance passion and motherly feelings at the same time. Let’s take a look at what the Belarusian tennis player has in store that she would like to transfer to the younger generation of tennis mothers.

Victoria Azarenka knows tennis moms have it harder than tennis dads

After welcoming her son in 2016 and taking his full custody from her ex-boyfriend, Victoria Azarenka put a strong foot forward by making a successful comeback to tennis. Recently, as she reached the quarterfinal round of the Miami Open, the Belarusian star opened up about how, as a tennis mother, she and Serena Williams changed the game, for the younger tennis moms to get into the sport.

Azarenka stated, “For the dads, I feel like it’s always been there. but for the moms, it’s definitely like something that is growing, and growing more. I feel like we broke, not just me but Serena, I think the first big top names really broke the stereotype that you cannot do both, have to choose between one or the other. I feel like I worked really hard as well to make sure we strive to create a better place and opportunity for young mothers to come back on tours.” 

Azarenka also highlighted how, even today, she is trying her best to create a better environment for players to come back into the sport after embracing motherhood. Not only that, the former Australian Open champion opened up a few months ago about her feelings after seeing a lot of mothers, such as Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki, and Angelique Kerber, get back on tour.

Azarenka is happy to see tennis moms back on the court 

As someone who has successfully combined her tennis career and motherhood for years, when she started off her 2024 tennis season, Azarenka shared her excitement to see players coming back, to complete what they had left behind.

She stated, “I’ve said it a few years ago already. I think we broke the stereotype that you be an athlete and have a family. This definitely has been broken. It’s actually evolved more and more.” She went on to say that players returning to the tour may be the source of their comfort and self-assurance that they can play on the circuit.

Who are your favorite picks in the tennis moms group? Let us know your picks in the comments below.

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