Taylor Townsend has been in fine form at the French Open but the American has been forced to make some tough sacrifices, with the world No. 2 in doubles not travelling with her son
American tennis sensation Taylor Townsend has candidly shared the emotional reasons behind not bringing her son along on the WTA Tour, highlighting the difficult sacrifices she and her peers must endure. It comes after she was forced to create her own clothing line after struggling to get a sponsor.
At 29, Townsend has had an impressive stint at the French Open, battling through three qualifying rounds to make it to the first round in singles, and is still competing in both the women’s doubles and mixed doubles events, boasting six wins in Paris. Currently ranked as the world No. 2 in doubles, Townsend has previously climbed to the 47th spot in singles and has earned £4.4 million ($6 million) in prize money throughout her illustrious career.
She holds the titles for Wimbledon and the Australian Open doubles champion, yet has faced numerous challenges along the way. On March 14, 2021, she welcomed her son, Adyn Aubrey, into the world. Now four years old, Adyn is attending camp back in America for the first time, an important event that Townsend regrets missing, as evidenced by her emotional reaction.
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With tears in her eyes, Townsend took to Instagram to express her feelings: “I’m trying to keep this together, but today is a big day! Today is Adyn’s first camp, and I’m missing him.”
Later, in an interview with Tennis Channel, Townsend delved deeper into the “hard” realities of life on tour and elaborated on her decision not to have her son accompany her on the circuit.
Townsend received praise from host Prakash Amitraj for “making it count” and advancing in the competition, which would justify her time away from Adyn.
She responded: “I mean, for real because this life is not easy. A lot of people ask me, ‘Why don’t you travel with him?’ I’m like, ‘S—, this is hard for us!’ It’s really hard for us, I mean we jump time zones going hotel to hotel, new place to new place, week after week, like, living out of a suitcase.
“No home-cooked meals. You eat out every night, or Uber Eats, or whatever. This is a hard life for us! So it’s very difficult for them.
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“So I make the sacrifice, personally I’m like, ‘I’d rather you have your routine and be home, and have some solid structure.’ That’s important to me for his development.
“It’s a hard sacrifice that I make but you know, he’s a great kid so. I feel like it’s paying off and like I said, I just pray that he knows why I’m doing it and you know, I’m working to build a better life for us later down the road.”
