Taylor Townsend is a Grand Slam champion. At the time of her interview with ESSENCE, she had just won her second title at the 2025 Australian Open, taking home the Doubles trophy with partner Kateřina Siniaková. (The duo are ranked No.3 in the world.) Every win has a deeper meaning than some cool hardware and hefty prize money for the Chicago native and mother of one. For her, it is a reminder that the time she is on the road, away from her soon-to-be 4-year-old son, is not in vain.
“Being a working mom, it’s not easy, but I try and make it worthwhile and always tell him I’m leaving for a reason,” she says shortly after her Australian Open win. “Coming back with trophies kind of just shows that it was worth it.”
Townsend found out she was pregnant in 2020. The news was a shock not only because of her commitment to her game and concerns about how having a child would change that, but also because she never planned to be a parent.
“One of the things that was shocking was I didn’t want kids because I have spent my whole entire life playing tennis. I’ve been playing tennis since I was four,” she says. But as she found herself having to grapple with reality, she realized that having a child was actually a gift. She’s been embracing the role since her son, AJ, was born in 2021. Now, she encourages other women in sports to not feel like they need to choose between their dreams and their desire for a family.
“You need support. You need to make sure that you are loved and that you also have people that you can lean on for guidance and direction because to think that we can do everything ourselves is ignorant,” says Townsend, who credits her family and close friends for being a “phenomenal” village she can count on. “I mean, it’s possible. And I’m a living, breathing example of that. I wear this badge very proudly because it gives me strength to know that I’ve been able to endure and overcome, but also inspire other people to know that this is possible. And it’s happening across the board with sports, not just tennis, but basketball, soccer, and so many other sports. And it’s super, super exciting.”
We spoke with Townsend about balancing nonstop travel as a tennis star with being a hands-on mom, her remedy for mommy guilt, and how her son has inspired her to play her best tennis yet.
ESSENCE: How are you? Like, really, how are you feeling? I know you’re all the way in Australia competing, so that’s a lot already. But being a working mother on top of that is no joke.
Taylor Townsend: I’m doing okay. I’m doing well, but it’s also really strange because I won a Grand Slam, and then one day later, I’m in a different country, and I get my a– kicked, and it’s crazy, but that’s just how tennis goes. But I’m doing well. I’m really enjoying the time that I have to myself. When I’m on the road, and I don’t travel with AJ, I really try and just use this time to ask myself questions and get one with myself. I try to use these opportunities to grow as a person so I come back and I’m able to instill certain lessons in him or certain realizations that I’ve maybe come to while I’ve been gone to help me to be a better mom to him. I’m enjoying it.
It is never easy being away from my son, especially for so long. I miss him. I try to talk to him every day, but these time changes are crazy.
When you first found out you were expecting, being a professional tennis player, what were you feeling? I’ve heard athletes talk about worries about losing their rankings, their form, and a concern about having to step away from their sport for a certain amount of time, sometimes longer than planned.
So when I found out that I was expecting, I was terrified. One of the things that I always wanted, and I always said, was when I’m done, I just want to have my freedom. I don’t want to be tied down to anything. I just want to be able to move how I want to move. And so I really did not want kids. So when I found out that I was expecting, I was so scared [laughs], and I was like, what the heck? It was so unexpected. I was actually in the middle of playing an event, and I had to put on a mask and a face, and nobody knew. So I had to really hide it, and I had to hide it for months up until after the US Open in 2020, which was my last event.
So I didn’t tell anybody, but a couple of people, like my doubles partner, because I had to let her know, but I was terrified. What changed my perspective was I asked myself, how is this bad for you? And I kept saying, well, my tennis and I won’t be able to travel. I won’t be able to make money, and my ranking. And I was like, how is this bad for you? And I couldn’t answer it. I didn’t have an answer because everything I kept coming up with was tennis, tennis, tennis, tennis, tennis. But there was nothing that I had that was going to negatively affect me as a person. And that was honestly the first time that I really had to look at myself and differentiate myself from the tennis player and Taylor the person, which I didn’t do prior to that. So that was really the start of it. And when I realized, Taylor, this isn’t as bad as you think, I kind of had an exhale moment and just kind of accepted it, that it is what it is and this is how it’s supposed to be. I’m a person of faith, and I believe that everything happens for a reason. So I kind of, in that moment, accepted that that was how things were supposed to be and was going to roll with the punches from there.
You mentioned having an unexpected C-section. What was the process like to strengthen your core and get yourself physically and mentally back to where you wanted to be on the court?
When I had the C-section, that was not something that was planned. I had an amazing pregnancy. I was on the court two days day before I went to the hospital. I actually was planning on having a water birth, and I did the class and I had the certification. It just expired. But it was something that was totally unplanned and the process was incredibly difficult. My coach, John Williams, was with me through from the beginning, and he gave me little markers: All right, go up and down the stairs. Okay, get up and walk. Get up and walk to the edge of the block. And for me, mentally, it was the hardest part because I am such an independent person, so having to rely on other people to do even the most basic things for me literally made me break down and cry multiple times.
Every single time I needed to get up to go to the bathroom, I needed help. Every time I got on and off the toilet, I needed help. That was really hard for me. I couldn’t even bathe myself. My sister, Simone, was absolutely amazing. she stayed with me for two and a half weeks and was doing all the dirty work. Meanwhile I’m pumping, got milk coming out from all different places. My body’s changing. I didn’t know what was going on. So it was a crazy time. And when I finally got to the place where I could be active, moving my body, the core strengthening was the most important. But to be honest, I’m still in a place where I’m still working on that, and my core is still not a hundred percent because of the damage that was done with the C-section. It’s so invasive. So it is just something that I’m going to constantly have to work on basically for the rest of my life because it’s something that was just so traumatic for the body. So, it’s a work in progress. It’s definitely not anything that’s just a one-time thing, but a lot of sit-ups, a lot of crunches, a lot of planks, all the things.
How does being a mother to AJ motivate you?
Being a mother to AJ motivates me on different levels. Being a mom and just honestly, the strength and resilience that I have that I draw from knowing that the experience that I’m having and that I’m living is not normal. And it’s something that takes so much strength. It takes so much strength to be able to leave your child for weeks and weeks and weeks at a time. So I draw from that. Being a mother to Adyn also has given me a large amount of accountability.
Me looking at my son’s eyes and telling him, Hey, I’m leaving, but I’m going to come back with a trophy, I mean that sh-t. I mean that with everything in me because my word is everything to me, and that’s what I teach him. Say what you mean, mean what you say. And so I keep those words, and I keep the way that he looks at me, and I see that, and it drives me, and it motivates me in a different way that I had never had in my entire life. It is a constant motivator. Being able to talk to him on FaceTime and knowing that’s the only way I can communicate with him is a motivator for me because I’m like, damn, I got to make this worthwhile. We have good days and bad days, and sometimes it’s great, and sometimes there’s rain, but I just try and stick through it because those lessons are the most important, too. It’s like showing that you have to be resilient. No matter if things are good or bad, you still have to push through, and those are the things that I teach him, and I try and live my life to be an example for him. So even if I don’t say a word, he knows through my actions that this is how my mom lives, and this is how I want to live. And that’s just the pride that I take in being a mom.
What is your remedy for mom guilt if you grapple with it?
So, I do have mom guilt. It’s kind of changed and transformed over time. The way that I kind of handle that is I honestly just go in nature, or I want to be around animals. I just love being outside. I also dive heavily into the self-care. So I’ll go get a massage, go get something. I love doing skincare. I like trying new products and all that stuff. But in the beginning I really internalized it a lot because I had guilt about being gone. Then I had guilt about coming back and not having enough time with my son in comparison to how much I was gone. So I used to try and overcompensate or make up for that, and it was so stressful. So for me, also, one of the things that I do now, I really focus on quality time over quantity.
I realized that if I’m there every day, which is not the case, sometimes the time can be not as well spent. So I look at time as a monetary value. How am I spending my time? And so when I’m with my son, I try and just spend it with as much quality intention and giving him all of my attention. So if we’re watching a movie or if we’re eating dinner, no phone. I’m just talking to him, or we’re just really spending time. If we’re cuddling, we’re just there together. Just really soaking in the moment. So I just try and give him all of my attention so that the time spent is memorable, and that’s the way that I have shifted, and that’s the place that I’ve shifted into to know that I’m really pouring into him as much as I can, knowing how much I’m gone.
What’s your message to women athletes who want children but may be concerned about the effect it could have on their career?
I would say don’t give a you know what about that. It has been a blessing for me because I have been introduced into this era and have come up within this era of women not having to choose between families and their career. And that hasn’t always been the case for women. It has always been either or, which even if I look at the history of sports, women who wanted to have kids usually would retire and then have their children and be 100% focused on family life. And now I feel like we’re in a place and in a time where women are having the ability to come back and play into their later years. I’ve even been playing my best tennis later in my career.
I feel like it’s been super fun for me because I’ve had a resurgence and have accomplished so many firsts that I never had in 11 years of being on tour. So I would just say, don’t care about that. If you want to have a family, if that’s something that you want, it is so fulfilling because there is life outside of sport. There are times when our identities are so wrapped up in what we do, our wins and losses, that we can’t really differentiate external life from our sports life and from our careers. And so for me, I would say do it if that’s something that you want. If you have people around you and someone who is a supportive spouse or someone who is supportive, a supportive partner who will be with you along the way to help you, that’s the only thing that matters.
It’s an exciting time because it is like a revolution for the modern woman. We have so many different things, but this is another badge that we can do, and it’s not something in which it has to end our careers, but ultimately, in my case, it’s just gotten started. So I’m excited for the road ahead and I’m appreciative for what the experience has taught me because who knows where I would’ve been if I didn’t have AJ.
In the world of professional tennis, motherhood is not often associated with peak performance on the court. However, American tennis player Taylor Townsend is defying expectations and proving that mamas can excel in their careers post-baby.
After giving birth to her son in March 2020, Townsend took time off from the tour to focus on motherhood and recovery. Many doubted whether she would be able to return to her previous level of play, but Townsend had other plans. She worked tirelessly to regain her fitness and form, and is now playing some of the best tennis of her career.
Townsend’s recent success on the court is a testament to her dedication and resilience. She has shown that motherhood is not a hindrance, but rather a source of motivation and strength. As she continues to compete at the highest level, Townsend is inspiring other mamas to pursue their passions and never give up on their dreams.
So here’s to Taylor Townsend and all the mamas out there who are balancing motherhood and career aspirations. Keep shining on and off the court! #MamasAtWork.
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