Mothers are superheroes and German tennis star Tatjana Maria has proved that. Just 15 months after the birth of the second child, Tatjana Maria reached her first Grand Slam semi-finals. She defeated her German opponent Jule Niemeier, 4-6, 6-2, 7-5.
Both players made a number of errors on either side of Court 1 as they fumbled uncomfortably to get going. However, Niemeier, who was playing at Wimbledon for the first time, took the lead right away by breaking Tatjana Maria in the opening game and winning the set when she missed a forehand. Big-hitting Niemeier struggled to find her flow on her best shot, the service, resulting in 11 double faults in a match of varying fortunes.
First Grand Slam semi-finals for Tatjana Maria
However, Tatjana Maria came back to tie the match at 4-4 and then broke once more in the twelfth game to win.
“I have goosebumps everywhere,” said Maria. “It was such a tough match against Jule, she’s from the same country as me, we’re both German. Today I think we made Germany really proud. It’s a dream to live this with my family, with my two little girls. One year ago, I just gave birth, almost, so it’s crazy.”
Moreover, the German player made her Grand Slam debut in 2007 and, until this year’s Wimbledon, had never advanced past the third round at a major. In the semifinals, she’ll take on her friend Ons Jabeur, a third-seeded Tunisian. “Ons, it would be really nice to play Ons because she is really part of my family,” Maria said. “She is part of my family, she loves my kids, she is playing with them every day.“It would be great to play her, we never know. But I am only happy that I am in a semi-final now.”
