Mother-of-two Tatjana Maria made it to the Wimbledon semis on Tuesday, in what has been the feel-good story of the tournament.
The 34-year-old beat German compatriot Jule Niemeier 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 in the quarterfinal clash on Court One.
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Maria, who gave birth to her second daughter, Cecilia, 15 months ago, will play third seed Ons Jabeur for a place in the final at the All England Club.
Magical moment for Maria 💫
After returning from maternity leave less than a year ago, Tatjana Maria reaches her first Grand Slam QF#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/dCv8QXelTY
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 3, 2022
But the veteran, who came back from maternity leave just under a year ago, said despite her shock run at Wimbledon, being a mum was the most important thing in her life.
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“I’m in the semifinal of Wimbledon, it’s crazy, but I’m still a mum,” said the World No 103.
“After this I will go out over there and I will see my kids and I will do the same thing what I do every single day.
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“I will change her Pampers (nappies), I mean, everything normal. I try to keep normal as much as possible, because what makes me proudest is to be a mum.”
Jabeur breaks new ground
World No 2 Ons Jabeur became the first Arab woman to reach the semi-final of a Grand Slam on Tuesday.
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The Tunisian went one set down to Czech opponent Marie Bouzkova but lost only two games after that as she powered to a 3-6, 6-1, 6-1 win on Centre Court.
Here’s Ons with Tatjana Maria’s daughter youngest daughter at the start of Wimbledon. Ons and Tatjana will face each other in the semis. Tatjana said that Ons is “basically a member of our family.” pic.twitter.com/eEpuLxzSRS
— Lindsay Gibbs (@linzsports) July 5, 2022
“I am really, really happy especially that it happened on this court because I have so much love for this court,” she said.
“Hopefully the journey for me will continue.”
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But she explained that it would be difficult to face 34-year-old Maria, whom she described as her “barbeque buddy”.
“It is going to be tough to play her (Maria), she is a great friend,” the Tunisian said.
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“I am really happy she is in a semi-final — look at her now, she is in a semi-final after having two babies. It is an amazing story.”
