Taylor Townsend: The miracle mother of tennis

Taylor Townsend competes at the 2025 Miami Open - Photo: Reuters

Single mother

In a recent interview with CNN, 28-year-old American tennis player Taylor Townsend opened up about the huge sacrifices she has had to make as a single mother. She admitted that she is always torn between her career on the court and her endless longing for her 4-year-old son Adyn at home.

"I cried many nights when I was away from Adyn Aubrey, but now that I have to make the sacrifice, I just pray that it's worth it," Townsend said. Her life took an unexpected turn in 2020 when she discovered she was pregnant, a moment that completely reshaped her world.

Because before Adyn came into her life, Townsend wasn't even sure motherhood was part of her future path. "One of the shocking things was that I didn't want kids, because I wanted to spend my whole...my whole life playing tennis. I've been playing tennis since I was four years old," she says.

Although she never imagined what motherhood would be like, the arrival of Adyn in 2021 has been a driving force in Townsend’s journey to the top of her career. Having never cracked the top 60 in doubles before her son was born, Townsend has had to work much harder to become a mother.

She strives to train and compete to be more successful not only for the sake of "bread and butter", but also for herself as a mother. Townsend has made a great progress by winning two Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon 2024 and the Australian Open 2025.

Taylor Townsend says she's been strong since her son Adyn Aubrey was born - Photo: Instagram

Female tennis players become "stronger" when they become mothers

Townsend’s road to success was filled with obstacles and challenges. In 2012, the United States Tennis Association (USTA) refused to sponsor and support Townsend due to concerns about her weight and fitness. As a result, she had to pay for her own travel to the US Open.

Townsend struggled financially during the tournaments that followed. When she became a mother, she struggled to balance the grueling demands of tennis with the constant demands of childcare. Many of her tours lasted seven weeks, took her to five countries, and spanned five time zones, and the longing for her son left her exhausted. At those times, she would pull out pictures of her son and be energized for the fight.

Townsend now joins the ranks of the great “tennis moms” – mothers who have taken up the sport after getting married and having children. Take Kim Clijsters, for example, who made a stunning comeback to win the 2009 US Open final against Caroline Wozniacki to become the first mother to win a Grand Slam singles title since 1980!

And what about Serena Williams? After giving birth to her daughter, she reached the finals of Wimbledon in 2018 and 2019 and the US Open in 2018 and 2019. She showed incredible stamina until she announced her retirement in 2022.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/taylor-townsend-nguoi-me-ky-dieu-trong-lang-quan-vot-20250414111328782.htm