Azarenka: Combining motherhood, career 'not as scary as people think'

Victoria Azarenka doesn't doubt that she and other female athletes can pick up their careers again following pregnancy, as long as they have the desire.

The Belarusian is playing her second event since giving birth to a son, Leo, in 2016. She’s won her first two matches at Wimbledon this week, defeating teenager CiCi Bellis and then 15th-seeded Elena Vesnina.

While Azarenka is happy to be an example for others, she also says female athletes should not question their ability to do it.

"I just think that it's not as scary as people think sometimes," she said. “It's a lot of conscious decision that you have to make to give yourself that break and be able to work hard and start really, physically, a little bit from zero. But I do believe that if you're very passionate about what you do and what you love to do, that you can do that."

Having a child has changed Azarenka's approach in some ways, like concentrating more during practice so she can spend less time on court. She insists she isn't putting pressure on herself at this point in her comeback, but the two-time major champion and former No. 1 seems confident that she can get back to playing at a high level again.

Just a handful of players have won Grand Slams as mothers, most recently Kim Clijsters.

"You know, the guys have [the] luxury to never stop their career, and for girls it's tougher," she said. "But I think it's possible. Even before me, we had players do this. You know, like Kim Clijsters and a lot of girls who are maybe less ranked so their story isn't as big. It is possible.

"One of my biggest inspirations was [beach volleyball player] Kerri Walsh, that came back after three kids and [was] still playing for gold medal."

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