Former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki made a triumphant comeback in her return to competition at the National Bank Open in Montreal on Tuesday after a layoff of more than three years.
The 33-year-old Danish star defeated 115th-ranked Australian qualifier Kimberly Birrell 6-2, 6-2 at the hard-court event, a tune-up for the US Open, which starts on Aug. 28 in New York.
“I’m happy,” Wozniacki said. “A little tired. Just it was fun to be out there again playing on center court in front of a big crowd. I’m just thrilled that I could win my first match in three-and-a-half years.”
Photo: Eric Bolte-USA Today
Her second-round opponent is reigning Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova, the Czech world No. 10 who ousted Egypt’s 33rd-ranked Mayar Sherif 6-4, 6-2.
Wozniacki, the 2018 Australian Open champion, retired after a third-round loss at the 2020 Australian Open. She gave birth to two children and became a television commentator, her WTA playing days seemingly complete.
However, she announced in June that she was making a comeback and received wild-card entries into Montreal and next week’s Cincinnati tournament as stepping stones to the US Open, where she was runner-up in 2009 and 2014.
Before her retirement, Wozniacki won 30 titles and 635 career matches. She spent 71 weeks atop the rankings.
Now she has her first match victory as a mother, having given birth to son James and daughter Olivia in the 1,293 days since being ousted by Ons Jabeur at Melbourne in 2020.
“That’s pretty crazy,” she said. “I was just looking at the clock actually. My kids are napping right now which is awesome. So I’m going to catch them after I do a little bit of treatment and food and stuff.”
“That’s the good part of playing early. I still have the afternoon with them,” she added.
Wozniacki dropped the opening game, but rallied to capture the final four games of the opening set, the last on a Birrell double fault after 43 minutes.
“I was definitely a little rusty,” Wozniacki said.
Wozniacki broke for a 4-2 edge in the second set, held for a 5-2 lead and broke again on a backhand winner to secure the victory after 97 minutes, raising her arms skyward with a smile of delight at her achievement.
“I’m just excited to be back and competing, and I think for me it’s so special having my family here,” Wozniacki said. “As a 33-year-old that has played on tour for many years, and doing it with my kids that now, especially the older one is starting to really understand and gets to really experience the world and different countries, I think it’s so cool.”
In the women’s doubles, Taiwan’s Latisha Chan and China’s Yang Zhaoxuan, beat Chan’s sister, Chan Hao-ching, and Mexico’s Giuliana Olmos 7-6 (7/5), 7-5.
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