Elina Svitolina Overlooks Naomi Osaka for Tennis Veterans While Addressing Pillars of Her Motherhood Journey
Svitolina praises tennis veterans but skips Osaka—Is this a subtle dig or an honest oversight?
Returning to tennis after becoming a mother hits differently. While tennis moms, including Elina Svitolina and Naomi Osaka, are open about the transformation from motherhood to tennis, they haven’t had such a conversation with each other. Recently, the Ukrainian tennis player skipped a direct question regarding whether she has motherhood-related conversations with the Japanese player.
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The 29-year-old returned to tennis last year after giving birth to her daughter in October 2022. While she has been making headlines for her skills post motherhood, during her Canadian Open campaign, Svitolina was asked if she had spoken about transitioning back to tour as a mother with Naomi Osaka. To this, Svitolina gave a strange answer, overlooking the Japanese as tennis moms setting the inspirational stage.
In a post-match press conference, she stated, “I don’t know. I mean, I speak with a few of them, with Angie, with Caroline Wozniacki. You know, we practice together, we chat about our child (laughing), and, yeah, I feel like, you know, nice to have on tour some girls who went through a similar thing.”
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Caroline Wozniacki famously retired in 2020 and made a comeback in 2023 after having two kids, while Angelique Kerber also took a break from tennis to give birth to her daughter last year.
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Do you agree with Andy Roddick’s bold claim about his biggest heartbreak?
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Further, Svitolina added, “Everyone, of course, has their own different stories and different things that they went through, and difficulties, but I feel like, you know, it’s nice to have, and I think also motivation that we’re trying to push each other to become better, you know, to, yeah, just to try to win matches, to win tournaments.”
via Reuters
While she shockingly skipped Osaka’s name, the reason is unclear. On the other hand, in the past, the Ukrainian has also explained how motherhood changes her perspective, in the broad picture.
She stated, “When you find out you’re pregnant you hope everything goes well, but you also have to consider the realistic option of not being able to come back. At the time, it took me several months to realize that, to have a different perspective on my career. I think this helped me when I came back. Without expectations, I came back even faster, because I didn’t expect to do it already in Charleston.”
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Subsequently, earlier this year, the Japanese tennis player also shared a different take when asked about going against a fellow ‘mother’ Svitolina at the Miami Open.
Naomi Osaka honored to play against Elina Svitolina
Naomi Osaka was questioned about facing fellow mother Elina Svitolina in the second round of the 2024 Miami Open. She responded, “I was watching her [Elina Svitolina] last year and I was admiring all her runs in Wimbledon, and it’s going to be, I guess, a really incredible honor to play against her. So I guess, I’ll see when that happens.”
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While Osaka expressed admiration and excitement at the prospect of playing against the Ukrainian player, Svitolina’s recent actions stirred some drama. These two have an iconic rivalry with an H2H total at 7 and Osaka leading. But either way, it’s an interesting conclusion this press conference question has come to.
Nevertheless, what are your thoughts on the Svitolina statement? Do let us know in the comment section below.
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Written by
Pratishtha Prakash
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Pratishtha Prakash, senior tennis writer and resident analyst at EssentiallySports isn’t just a sports journalist; she’s a storyteller who found her true calling in tennis content. It is something she seamlessly integrates into both her professional and personal realms. At ES, she has curated more than 2400 articles, and each write-up reflects that fans are here to stay! Having professional certifications in content and digital marketing, Pratishtha has made it a habit to hone her skills as a quality journalist.
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Arunima Bhanot
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