Reigning Olympic Gold medalist Belinda Bencic and her partner Martin Hromkovic announced that they had been blessed with a baby girl on Instagram earlier this week, and mother and daughter are doing well.
Awwww congratulations. Iga Swiatek
The couple shared a photo of Bencic holding the hand of their newborn daughter, Bella, with the caption: “Bella , 23.4.2024 Our love.”
A popular player in the WTA locker room, the post was met with a flood of congratulatory messages from Bencic’s fellow players, from Jelena Ostapenko, to her Billie Jean King Cup teammate Jil Teichmann and her best friend, Donna Vekic.
“Taurus baby, best baby,” wrote Ajla Tomljanovic, who has a May 7 birthday herself.
“Welcome to the mom’s club,” former US Open semi-finalist Yanina Wickmayer, who returned to compete after the birth of her own daughter, wrote. “The best club in the world by far.”
World No 1 Iga Swiatek wrote: “Awwww congratulations.”
“Congrats, so happy for you,” posted Ons Jabeur, while others also sent their good wishes, including Marta Kostyuk, Alja Tomljanovic, Katie Boulter, Elina Svitolina, and Paula Badosa, amongst others, to congratulate the Swiss and her longtime boyfriend on the birth of their daughter.
“Bella , 23.4.2024 Our love.”
The 27-year-old Swiss, who celebrated her own birthday last month, revealed in November that she and longtime boyfriend Hromkovic, a Slovak soccer player who has doubled as her fitness coach, were expecting.”
Bencic and Hromkovic have been in a relationship since 2018.
In November 2023, the couple posted a family picture including their pet named Paula, and announced the news of Bencic’s pregnancy via an Instagram post.
“Excepting our little miracle soon! We can’t wait to meet you,” she wrote in the caption.
Bencic won 30 out of 42 matches in 2023, a season in which she won the Adelaide International and Abu Dhabi Open while finishing as the runner-up at the Charleston Open.
Due to her long absence from the tour, her WTA ranking has slipped from World No 4 to 92.
The current Olympic gold medalist will not be defending her title in Paris in July, unless she makes a miracle come-back to tennis, and pulls off a few massive wins.
Nor has the Swiss said if she plans to return to the tour after giving birth, as other mothers, such as Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, and Elina Svitolina, have done.
Meanwhile, Petra Kvitova will soon follow in her footsteps, since she is also expecting. The Czech has been vocal about her desire to return to the sport.
Belinda Bencic and her partner Martin Hromkovic, seen with their dog Paula, announced her pregnancy in November
