As a new mother, Belinda Bencic believes her best tennis is still ahead

As you read this, Belinda Bencic has already been practicing on the court at Sydney's Ken Rosewall Arena.

But she is not the same smooth Swiss athlete you saw winning titles in Adelaide and Abu Dhabi two years ago, a far cry from the player who won the singles gold medal in Tokyo in 2021. With her husband and fitness coach Martin Hromkovic in the air nearby, Bencic has hit balls, but her life has changed dramatically. There is now another member of the family. Baby Bella, Bencic's eight-month-old daughter, lies in a sling across Martin's chest.

Yes, Bella is going to Australia, Benic said from her home in Bratislava, Slovakia, a week before the family flew to Sydney. It will be me, my mother [Dana]my husband and the baby. To be honest, it went quite well. She likes to come with us to tennis, even to the gym. It's cool that we can take her everywhere.

That means there will be no separation anxiety between mother and daughter when Team Switzerland meets France on December 28 as the United Cup gets underway in Sydney. It's all part of the 18-nation, 10-day Hologic WTA Tour/ATP Tour partnership. The semi-finals and finals will be played in Sydney on January 4 and 5.

When she gave birth last April, Bencic wasn't sure if she would come into line in early 2025. She made a conscious effort not to set a clock on her planned return. In Monaco, Bencic started a modest core exercise eight weeks after Bella's arrival.

Three weeks later, she started practicing for 15 minutes on a small track and gradually increased to an hour on a larger track. Soon she started wondering what it would be like to play a real match.

She found out in late October, thirteen months after her last competition in San Diego. Bencic shared two matches at the ITF W75 in Hamburg and had a better performance the following week in Luxembourg.

I knew I had to get faster, my reaction time was still not there, Bencic said. But I've been working on stuff like that. I was already moving better after the Fed Cup.

On Friday, Bencic spoke to the media ahead of the United Cup and shared her thoughts on her progress and goals for the season.

“Well, I'm definitely improving every day,” she said. “So that's very motivating for me to see improvement. I think my tennis is there. I think that's like riding a bike. I don't think you lose that.”

But it is certainly the physical side that I can still improve. I have already improved a lot. I think the most I had to improve was my movement, reaction and just my physical condition.”

Bencic helped Switzerland to a Billie Jean King Cup qualifying victory over Serbia two weeks later. She then reached the final of the WTA 125 in Angers, France. Playing five straight matches – plus doubles – left her exhausted, so it wasn't surprising that she lost to Alycia Parks in three sets.

I was very satisfied with how I played in France, Bencic said. The results went well. I felt like everything I practiced got better. The movement also in my playing. We felt like, 'Okay, it's enough.' I really have to get back to work now. I have to be ready for the United Cup in Australia.

I'm really excited to see how it's going to go – to play against better players.

Life as a mother is everything Bencic thought it would be: basically the best time of our lives, she said.

Bencic reports that Bella is an easy-going baby who sleeps well and doesn't cry much. The biggest surprise, she added, was the amount of love you feel.

Bencic, currently ranked No. 487, said she was encouraged by the success of mothers, not only in tennis (Kim Clijsters won three of her four Grand Slam titles as a mother), but also in other disciplines. Track star Wilma Rudolph and basketball players Candace Parker and Sheryl Swoopes all won gold medals as mothers.

Although it seems like she has been in the top tennis world for a long time, Bencic is only 27 – still younger than top 10 players Jasmine Paolini, Jessica Pegula and Barbora Krejcikova. That played a big role in her decision to become a mother in the middle of her career instead of after it.

Is it possible that her best tennis still comes first?

Yes, Bencic said, one hundred percent. I really believe that. Because I feel like it's not impossible to come back and at least play at the level I played before. I really feel like I'm still young. I am confident that I have many good years ahead of me.

I'm not just coming back to be an average player, I want to go and have more success.