(Reuters) – Belinda Bencic came from behind to beat Ashlyn Krueger 4-6 6-1 6-1 and capture the Abu Dhabi WTA 500 title on Saturday, four months after returning to the circuit from maternity leave.
The Swiss former world number four, who is now outside the top 150, gave birth to her daughter Bella in April last year. She becomes the first mother to claim a WTA singles title since Elina Svitolina won in Strasbourg in May 2023.
It was also the biggest title won by a mother on the WTA tour since Victoria Azarenka triumphed at the 2020 Cincinnati Open, which is a WTA 1000 event.
Bencic’s last trophy had also come in Abu Dhabi in February 2023 and the 27-year-old Tokyo Olympics gold medallist has a 9-0 record at the event.
“It was a big dream for me to come back and play in front of her (Bella) and to win the tournament,” Bencic said.
“This is the first tournament I’ve won twice … I will have to come back here for the rest of my career!”
Krueger, who is slated to break into the top 40 on Monday, controlled the opening set where she fired 21 winners but Bencic came back in the second with only three unforced errors.
In the decider, Bencic broke early to go 2-0 up before breaking again to take a 5-1 lead.
After two hours and 23 minutes, Bencic fired her 30th winner to claim the title, later posing with the trophy in one arm and her daughter in the other.
“It’s so impressive, you coming back, being a mother. It’s really inspirational,” Krueger said.
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
