'Players should get protected ranking for egg freezing'

Former US Open champion Sloane Stephens wants players' rankings to beryllium protected if they take to frost their eggs.

Under existent Women's Tennis Association (WTA) rules, caller mothers are capable to usage their erstwhile ranking to participate 12 tournaments complete a three-year play from nan commencement of their child.

Since 2019, returning mothers pinch a typical ranking precocious capable to beryllium seeded person besides had a guarantee they will not look a seeded subordinate successful nan opening information of their first 8 tournaments.

American Stephens explained really nan egg-freezing process tin effect women physically and mentally, affecting really they execute erstwhile they return to nan court.

“They put you to slumber and they really return nan eggs out. It's a very progressive process and I don't deliberation group understand that," nan 31-year-old told BBC Radio 5 Live's Naga Munchetty.

"I deliberation nan wide statement of it is that it's very easy and very simple, but it's conscionable not.

"It is difficult but if you want to person a family, if you want to proceed to beryllium successful successful nan profession that you emotion and past besides person a family and beryllium a mum 1 day, you shouldn't person to conflict 1 for nan other."

Egg freezing is nan process of harvesting and freezing a woman's eggs truthful she tin person children astatine a later date.

Cricket World Cup victor Nat Sciver-Brunt precocious said astir her determination to frost her eggs to let her to proceed her profession and person a babe erstwhile she retires.

"People put it disconnected because they don't want to miss work. We are each independent contractors and we're fundamentally conscionable connected our ain if you do get pregnant aliases you determine to frost your eggs," erstwhile world number 3 Stephens said.

"It would beryllium ace adjuvant for a batch of girls because it would make it a batch little scary.

"More group would do it and beryllium proactive astir it because they wouldn't consciousness nan unit to travel backmost to nan athletics correct distant if they weren't ready.”

Stephens said she had "no problem being nan guinea pig" erstwhile it came to nan procedure.

“I deliberation it was thing that I ever wanted to do. My grandpa was an OBGYN [obstetrician-gynecologist] truthful it was thing that we had ever spoken astir and it was a very unfastened conversation," she said.

"Obviously I ne'er knew really agelong I would play tennis. I ne'er knew that I would beryllium 1 of nan champion players successful nan world.

“Family readying and being proactive and early readying is not scary. It's a very normal and earthy thing."

Two-time awesome victor Victoria Azarenka told BBC Sport successful May that she would for illustration to spot maternity salary introduced connected nan WTA Tour.

A number of mothers person returned to tennis successful caller years - possibly astir notably Serena Williams, who reached 4 Grand Slam finals aft having her first daughter, Olympia, successful 2017.

The WTA's existent rules springiness returning mothers 3 years to usage a typical ranking from nan commencement of their child.

Players returning from a one-year aesculapian absence aliases maternity time off whitethorn usage their typical ranking for seeding.

The governing assemblage of nan women's circuit besides provides maternal wellness services and education.

“Supporting athletes for complete 50 years, nan WTA boasts 1 of nan strongest wellness and wellness infrastructures successful master women’s sports today," a WTA connection provided to BBC Sport read.

"With astir 20 moms presently competing, nan WTA is committed to serving each player’s unsocial wellness travel and offering world-class maternal healthcare, policies, benefits, and education.

"From aesculapian academia investigation to nan backstage sector, nan WTA Women’s Health Taskforce is presently moving to collaboratively root and measure further benefits and policies successful nan areas of fertility preservation, paid maternal leave, and childcare support, which align pinch nan WTA’s standards, ethics, integrity, equitable access, and fairness wrong a competitory environment.”