Sloane Stephens looks at Madison Keys during the Charlotte Invitational in the Spectrum Center on December 6, 2024 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Jacob Kufferman | Getty pictures
The women's tennis association has introduced a rule that players can use to protect their ranking during the fertility treatments.
The guideline means that players can step back from professional tennis to undergo procedures such as egg or embryo freezing and return to the tour with a protected ranking.
The players must be on the go for a procedure for 10 consecutive weeks, and they receive a “special entry ranking” based on their latest average values. It can be used for three tournaments after it has returned.
“The WTA has now created a safe space in which the players explore options and make the best decisions for themselves,” said the eight-time WTA champion Sloane Stephens in a press release.
The rule expands the existing WTA support programs such as maternity leave, postpartum support and fertility grants.
“We endeavor to support WTA players in navigating and compensate for the decisions associated with career and family,” said Portia Archer, CEO CEO from WTA, in a press release.
As athletes, the move comes to increase the efforts to cope with the fertility problems.
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