Mum's the word! For the third time in four years, new mothers reach Wimbledon semi-final

Belinda Bencic advanced to her second Grand Slam semi-final at Wimbledon, defeating seventh-seed Mirra Andreeva 7-6(3), 7-6(2) in straight sets at the All-England Club on Wednesday. The 28-year-old Swiss player, returning to competitive tennis after maternity leave, needed 2 hours and 7 minutes to secure victory on Court 1.Bencic's performance marked her 38th career Top 10 win and only her second at Wimbledon, matching her best Grand Slam result. The former World No. 4 lost her serve just once during the match, occurring when she first attempted to close out the match at 5-4 in the second set.Bencic is the third new mother to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals in the last four years. In 2022, Tatjana Maria had achieved this feat. It was repeated a year later by Elina Svitolina. Both Maria and Svitolina, however, bowed out in the last-four stage.The 28-year-old Swiss gave birth to her daughter Bella in April last year and returned to competition six months later. She was ranked 487th in the world at the start of the year at United Cup. Ever since, she's pushed herself into No. 35 in WTA Rankings. By beating the seventh ranked Andreeva, Bencic is due to return to the top-20.
This semi-final appearance comes five years and 309 days after her first major semi-final at the 2019 US Open, where she lost to Bianca Andreescu. This gap represents the fifth-longest between Grand Slam semifinals in the Open Era.Bencic executed her game plan effectively, utilising her slice serve precisely into the corners. Despite not having a powerful serve, she maintained it low and out of her teenage opponent's strike zone. The Swiss player won 73 percent of first serve points.Bencic will next play eighth-seeded Iga Swiatek who also secured her first Wimbledon semi-final, by defeating Liudmila Samsonova 6-2, 7-5.Playing on No. 1 Court, five-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek displayed dominant form against first-time major quarterfinalist Samsonova. The match lasted 1 hour and 49 minutes.