Motherhood offers Osaka, Wozniacki, Kerber a new dimension at Australian Open
The three women are all back at the Australian Open, balancing family life but still targeting success
Naomi Osaka of Japan & Angelique Kerber of Germany
Spotting the common theme at this year’s Australian Open is pretty simple; the return of the Grand Slam-wining mothers.
But while Naomi Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki and Angelique Kerber happily chatted on Friday about what being a mother has brought them personally, the tangible effect was also clear to see and hear as each of them explained how being a mother has changed the dynamic of being a professional tennis player.
Not just in the demands on their time, but in the perspective that it has brought each of them when it comes to trying to win the biggest tennis matches and the biggest events.
“For us, it is completely different mindset because, of course, we are not really the important person right now in our lives, there is someone else,” said former No 1 Kerber, the most recent mother of the lot. “It is nice to see them back. I think for me, I’m really excited to be here and see all the faces again after 18 months.”
BALANCING WORK AND TENNIS NEVER EASY
Wozniacki, who returned to the Tour last summer after three years away, now has two young children and said she’s found a good way to balance tennis life with family.
“I travel with my kids everywhere,” she said. “They kind of are an extension of me and are always around. I really enjoy that. They’re very adaptable. They’re at an age where you can move them around, and especially the older one, Olivia, she loves to travel and explore. She asks me when we’re going on the plane next, where we’re going next.
“It’s a lot of fun to be able to share these memories with them, even though they’re still pretty small. But, yeah, they’re here. I like to train early, so when I have a practice day, I practice early, then I have the afternoon with them, which is great.”
Osaka, who returns in Melbourne after 14 months away, has stated how different she feels as a person. The Japanese decided to leave her daughter, Shai, at home, and hopes she doesn’t miss too much in her development while she’s away.
“It’s definitely been really hard,” Osaka said. “She’s learning things while I’m gone. I’m hoping she doesn’t learn how to crawl before I come back. She’s doing her little plank thing and scooting forward and back. I think it might be a little inevitable.
“I’m definitely sad, but I feel like it’s a selfish sad because I want her to be here. But I think for her health and like her whole environment is at home – you know what I mean? I don’t want to put her out of that while she’s still so young. I FaceTime her often, so…”
Fire and belief still there for all of them
Ultimately, of course, all three women are here in Melbourne for one reason; because they think they still have something to offer the game, and they still believe they can win the biggest titles.
“I think anytime I step on a court, I believe I can win the match no matter who the opponent is across the net,” said Wozniacki, who won her first and to date only Grand Slam title in Melbourne in 2018.
“I think I’m playing well. My body feels pretty good. Again, it’s a long way to go. I’m just going to focus on my first-round opponent and kind of go from there. That’s always kind of been my mindset. Yeah, I do believe that I’m playing very well.”
Kerber, the champion in Melbourne in 2016, said the drive was still there.
“I have still the fire,” she said. “I guess it’s still there. Of course, if you lose the match, I still need little bit time for myself. Now it’s a little bit different because I just need a few minutes and I’m okay again because I need to (be). But it is still there. When I lose a match, because I hate to lose, so it is still there. I think this doesn’t change.
“What changed is that I’m faster recovery to that, because of course if I’m back in the hotel, I have to be again someone else. It is nice. I feel, of course, like I said, I’m a little bit more relaxed after that. I try to enjoy it even more on and off court, try to making things not too complicated like before.”
Perils of playing in front of your children
Speaking to the Control the Controllables podcast last year, Andy Murray said he thought that one of the nice things about being a father would be for his kids to watch him play and know what he did for a living, only to find that, eventually, “they really didn’t care”.
Wozniacki said she was ready for her kids to say something similar.
“(Olivia) gets the fact that I play tennis,” she said. “Yesterday I woke her up in the morning and I go, Mommy has to go practice, I’ll be back in a couple of hours, we can do whatever you want.
“She goes, But Mommy, why do you need to practice? “I said, ‘because I want to be better. I want to win a lot more matches. She thinks about it, she goes, Mommy, I’m really good at tennis. I don’t need to practice. It humbles you sometimes (laughter). I love her attitude. It’s funny and it’s great.
“It also makes you realize I do what I love and I do my best. But at the end of the day the kids will be kids. Again, we will never be cool to them. I think right now I think I’m at a stage where I’m pretty cool for her and James. But we’re definitely getting to a stage eventually where she won’t care at all that I played tennis.”
