Beginner’s Guide: Rebecca Marino aims for new milestones at 2022 US Open

WATCH: Marino kicked off a resurgent summer at the Citi Open, where she upset Venus Williams in three sets.

NEW YORK—Rebecca Marino’s “Career 2.0” kicked into high gear this summer when she scored a full-circle victory over Venus Williams, and the 31-year-old is only aiming higher as she returns to play only her fourth US Open main draw through a career blighted by injuries and mental health struggles.

Get to know the big-hitting Canadian as she goes for her first main-draw win in Flushing Meadows since 2010.

The Basics

Marino was on course to begin last decade among the name’s next big things, kicking off her elite career in earnest at the 2010 US Open where she played Venus Williams tough over two sets in the second round.

“I guess I know what it's like now playing myself,” Williams famously said on court after the 7-6 (3), 6-3 victory over the teenager.

Marino kept climbing in 2011, reaching her first WTA final in Memphis and the third round of Roland Garros, peaking just inside the Top 40 by summer.

It was then that things took a turn: Marino was besieged by mental health struggles triggered by persistent cyberbullying and angry bettors. She sat out most of the 2012 season and aborted a brief comeback attempt the following year, ultimately spending half a decade off court—pursuing other interests and becoming an outspoken advocate for mental health.

In the years since, Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles have taken on that mantle, putting the issue Marino once pioneered on a global stage.

“It’s quite interesting how it’s now a hot topic, one that’s quite commonly spoken about,” she told me at the Citi Open in August. “At the time, I felt like I was sort of alone and even a little misunderstood. I’m really glad that the conversation is continuing in a very positive way. A lot of players are openly speaking about mental health and we’re getting a lot of help from the WTA in terms of managing that, as well.

“I think I’m really proud of how far things have come, and I’m proud of myself for what I was able to do at the time, for discussing a topic like that. I think we have a lot of positive role models currently on tour who are continuing the momentum of mental health conversations.”

At the time, I felt like I was sort of alone and even a little misunderstood. I’m really glad that the conversation is continuing in a very positive way. A lot of players are openly speaking about mental health and we’re getting a lot of help from the WTA in terms of managing that, as well. Rebecca Marino

The Latest

Marino made tentative steps back on tour at the end of 2018, but it wasn’t until the tour resumed following the global pandemic that she began making bigger strides on the WTA circuit, winning a match at the 2021 Australian Open and upsetting Paula Badosa en route to the third round at home at the National Bank Open.

“I feel, in a way, lucky that I had five years away from tennis, that I now can feel like I have some longevity in my career, and don’t feel as beat up as the other players,” she said after following up her win over Williams with another three-setter against 2010s contemporary Andrea Petkovic. “At the same time, I think it’s amazing that we have athletes who have stayed in the game for so long and their own longevity through fitness and keeping a high caliber of tennis.”

Her 2022 season saw close calls on clay and grass against the likes of Coco Gauff, Maria Sakkari, and Jelena Ostapenko, but it’s on hard courts where Marino plays her best—evidenced by quarterfinal finishes in Washington, D.C. and Granby that briefly brought her back into the Top 100 (No. 96) for the first time in a decade.

“For me, I was just waiting for the hard-court season to come. This is my bread and butter as a Canadian: we don’t have much grass or the red clay, so hard courts are what I really love playing on. Knowing that I’d had a pretty good season so far and some good results against top players on grass and clay, I felt like I set myself really well for the rest of the season.”

Why It Matters

Marino has gone from hot prospect to cautionary tale and back again, but through it all, the big serve and world-beating game style has never left her. With a refreshed perspective, renewed commitment, and relevant past experience, all signs point to Career 2.0 blowing the original model out of the water—starting with a year-end goal of Top 100.

“I sometimes call this Career 2.0, because there was a before, an after, and a huge chunk of time that’s passed in between. I’m at least looking at things I’ve done in the past and I can learn from it in terms of, I’ve already experienced Slams, playing top players, and I can use that to better prepare myself for what I’m doing now.”