Former doubles No.1 Strycova announces second pregnancy

Tennis star Barbora Strycova took her final bow from the professional tennis world in 2023, but 2024 holds another exciting milestone for her – welcoming her second child. The two-time Wimbledon doubles champion and former World No.1, 37-year-old Strycova, shared the news of her impending family addition in an Instagram post on Sunday. The heartwarming post featured a photo of her and her 2-year-old son, Vincent, playing on the beach in Dubai, revealing that Vincent is going to be a big brother.

Strycova made a brief return to competitive tennis in 2023, following Vincent’s birth in 2021, with the intention of retiring on her own terms. Alongside her fan-favorite partner Hsieh Su-wei, they reunited for four tournaments, including a stunning comeback to win their second Wimbledon crown together. Despite being unseeded, they lost just one set in six wins and emerged victorious in the final against No. 3 seeds Storm Hunter and Elise Mertens.

Her farewell tour concluded at the US Open, where she reached the third round in doubles with fellow Czech Marketa Vondrousova, and the quarterfinals in mixed doubles with Santiago Gonzalez. Reflecting on her career, Strycova expressed her happiness with the decision to return to tennis after giving birth and her readiness to move on to the next chapter of her life.

Throughout her career, Strycova clinched 32 WTA doubles titles, including eight at WTA 1000 events, and spent a total of 27 weeks at the top of the rankings in 2019 and 2020. Additionally, she secured two career WTA singles titles and reached a career-high ranking of No. 16 in 2017.