LONDON (Reuters) – Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki said she is hitting the ball as well as ever as she prepares to return to full-time tennis after a three-year break and twice giving birth.
Former world number one Wozniacki, who turned 33 on Tuesday, announced last month that she was coming out of retirement and has a wildcard for the forthcoming U.S. Open.
“As an athlete if you feel like can still play at your best and feel have something left in you then, it is a great opportunity,” Wozniacki, who won the Australian Open in 2018, said at Wimbledon on Tuesday where she is competing in the invitational doubles tournament.
“You only live once so why not? I started hitting a couple of times a week just to see how my body felt and all of a sudden found myself hitting as well as I ever have.”
She said the initial motivation was just to get back in tip-top shape after giving birth to daughter Olivia in June 2021 and then son James in October 2022.
“I was talking about it after James was born,” said Wozniacki, who is playing in the Wimbledon invitational doubles.
“I wanted to get back into real good shape and I have been working out a lot throughout my pregnancies.”
She is following the lead of several other players who have come back after starting families.
Belgium’s Kim Clijsters won three of her four Grand Slams after becoming a mum, while Serena Williams also returned, as did Victoria Azarenka and Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina has just reached the Wimbledon semi-finals as a wildcard.
On her own expectations, she said: “I am not putting a time on it. Just see how my body holds up, how I feel, how the kiddos and everyone do, but I am excited to come back and am excited to be playing and hopefully my best tennis yet.”
Also speaking on Tuesday, Clijsters said Wozniacki could make an impact when she returns.
“I played at the French Open with her in the legends and it was pretty obvious she was at a different level than most of us,” Clijsters told reporters.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
