7 WTA Tour ‘super mums’: Petra Kvitova set to join Naomi Osaka & co

L-R: Petra Kvitova, Naomi Osaka, and Victoria Azarenka.
Petra Kvitova, Naomi Osaka, and Victoria Azarenka.

Petra Kvitova is back!

The two-time Wimbledon winner and former world No 2 announced on Monday that she would return to tennis at the ATX Open at the end of February – just seven months after becoming a mum.

With son Petr in tow, the 34-year-old will become one of a high-profile group of WTA players who have returned to action after giving birth.

Here, we look at some of the biggest ‘super mums’ on the WTA Tour.

Petra Kvitova

One of the leading players of her generation, 2011 and 2014 SW19 champion Kvitova announced at the end of 2023 that she and Jiri Vanek, her husband and coach, were expecting their first child.

Rather fittingly, the Czech welcomed her son Petr while the 2024 Wimbledon Championships were taking place.

Kvitova – the winner of 31 WTA Tour titles – confirmed that she would return to action at the WTA 250 event in Austin, before playing Indian Wells and the Miami Open, having won the latter in 2023.

“I really miss tennis and miss competing, so I’m really looking forward to being back,” said the Czech.

“I can’t wait to see my fans all around the world. Thank you very much for supporting me. It will be a nice journey, and I can’t wait.”

Kvitova last played at the 2023 China Open.

Naomi Osaka

Perhaps the most high-profile mother on the WTA Tour is Osaka, who returned at the start of 2024 after welcoming her first child the previous year.

The Japanese has spent 25 weeks as the world No 1 and is a winner of four Grand Slam titles, lifting the US Open title in 2018 and 2020, and the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021.

Osaka announced at the start of 2023 that she and former partner Cordae were expecting their first child, with daughter Shae born in July 2023.

The 27-year-old returned just six months later and, after being unranked at the start of 2024, finished the season as the world No 59.

She is currently ranked 42nd in the world after reaching the Auckland Open final and the third round of the Australian Open at the start of 2025.

Victoria Azarenka

Azarenka has been one of the most visible mums in WTA action for several years now, having welcomed her son Leo back in December 2016.

Before becoming a mum, the Belarusian was the world No 1 for 51 weeks back in 2012 and 2013 and won the Australian Open in both seasons, alongside two runner-up finishes at the US Open.

Azarenka returned to tour in the summer of 2017 – reaching the fourth round of Wimbledon – and has remained a mainstay towards the top of the WTA Tour.

She was the Cincinnati Open champion in 2020 and reached her third US Open final later that summer – losing to Osaka in the final.

The Belarusian would also reach a third Indian Wells final in 2021, and the Australian Open semi-finals in 2023.

Caroline Wozniacki

After three and a half years of retirement, mum-of-two Wozniacki stunned the tennis world when she announced her comeback in June 2023.

The Dane had initially retired from tennis in January 2020, after a career that saw her spend 71 weeks as the world No 1, win the 2018 Australian Open title, and reach a further two US Open finals.

Having called time on her career due to an ongoing battle with rheumatoid arthritis, Wozniacki and husband David Lee welcomed daughter Olivia in June 2021 and son James in October 2022.

Wozniacki confirmed the following summer she was coming out of retirement and made her comeback at the 2023 Canadian Open.

Since her return, the Dane has twice made the second week of the US Open and is currently ranked 84th in the world.

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Elina Svitolina

One of the most inspirational figures on tour, Ukrainian Svitolina has continued to defy the odds since returning to the tour as a mother in April 2023.

Svitolina reached world No 3 at the peak of her powers in 2017 and won 16 WTA titles – including four WTA 1000 titles and the 2018 WTA Finals – before announcing her pregnancy in May 2022.

She and her husband Gael Monfils welcomed their daughter Skai that October, and it took just six months for the 30-year-old to return to professional tennis at the Charleston Open.

A stunning return to action saw her win her 17th WTA title in Strasbourg before reaching the French Open quarter-finals and Wimbledon semi-finals that season.

Svitolina would also reach the fourth round of Roland Garros and quarter-finals of Wimbledon in 2024, and the last eight of the Australian Open this January; she is currently 23rd in the WTA rankings.

Taylor Townsend

Since welcoming her son Adyn in March 2021, former junior prodigy Townsend has gone on to scale the greatest heights of her career.

The American is currently ranked 81st in singles and notably reached the quarter-final of the Canadian Open last year, though it is doubles where she has become a dominant force.

Alongside doubles great Katerina Siniakova, Townsend is currently the reigning champion at Wimbledon and the Australian Open – having claimed her second doubles Slam last month.

The 28-year-old is the world No 3 in doubles and was the 2022 US Open runner-up alongside Caty McNally, and the 2023 French Open runner-up partnered with Leylah Fernandez.

Townsend also reached the US Open mixed doubles final in 2024.

Tatjana Maria

German star Maria holds a rare place in WTA history as one of the few players to come back twice after welcoming children.

She welcomed her first daughter Charlotte in December 2013, alongside her husband and coach Charles-Eduoard Maria, and returned to action just four months later.

Maria cracked the top 50 of the WTA Rankings for the first time in November 2017 and won her maiden WTA title at the Mallorca Open in 2018, before giving birth to daughter Cecilia in April 2021.

Just a year later she won her second career title at the Copa Colsanitas and then went on a memorable run at Wimbledon in 2022, becoming one of the lowest-ranked Slam semi-finalists of the Open Era.

Maria would successfully defend her Copa Colsanitas title in April 2023 and is currently ranked 74th in the world.

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