At the 2020 US Open, Tsvetana Pironkova marked her return after 3 years of maternity leave and childcare with a record of reaching the quarter-finals to lose to Serena Williams.
In tennis history, is there a more impressive return than the 123rd Bulgarian female tennis player Tsvetana Pironkova just performed at the US Open tennis tournament 2020?
Andy Murray
Considered one of Britain’s greatest sportsmen in the past 10 years, this player has three Grand Slam titles and an Olympic golden brace.
He won his first Grand Slam at the 2012 US Open, becoming the first British player to win a Grand Slam title since Fred Perry in 1936!
Those achievements are a spectacular rebound after the start of Murray’s seemingly fast career.
From the age of 18, he once had his left ankle flipped. In 2011, he ripped the ligament of his right ankle again. Despite both uncertainties, Murray has reached the Grand Slam final 11 times.
By early 2019, Murry had to go to the operating table to have hip surgery at the age of 31. He announced his retirement, but Murray struggled to recover so that six months later, he and Feliciano Lopez won the men’s doubles at Queen’s.
Venus Williams
The Williams sisters were once one of the most feared forces in the WTA system. Venus dominated tennis in the early 2000s with 16 Grand Slam finals and 7 wins.
But in 2009, Venus’s career was seriously threatened because she was diagnosed with Sjögren’s Syndrome, a condition that causes fatigue in the arms and legs, joint and muscle pain, and is at risk of developing lymphoma.
Consequently, Venus is always tired before and after the game. Her blows lost their inherent strength. Venus dropped quickly. During the eight years, from 2009 to 2017, Venus failed to reach the Grand Slam women’s singles final.
But at the 2017 Australian Open, Venus excelled in the final and lost to her sister Serena Williams 6-4, 6-4. That miracle becomes a great source of motivation for anyone as seriously ill as Venus.