Former teenage prodigy Rebecca Marino has confirmed that she will be returning to the tour following a four-and-a-half year hiatus.
The 26-year-old announced an indefinite break from the sport in February 2013 after revealing she has been battling depression for a long period. A year before the announcement, she took a seven-month break to deal with the problem. At her worst, there were some days where Marino couldn’t get out of bed. Her enthusiasm was gone and so was her love for tennis.
Those dark days are now firmly behind Marino, who spent time coaching during her time away from the tour. It was the continuous involvement in tennis that aided her desire to resume her professional career.
“I had been coaching for the last few years and I had been involved in tennis, so I never really left.” Marino told Tennis Canada. “And I think just being around more high-performance players and seeing the Odlum Brown tournament in Vancouver inspired me to start playing again. I figured that now is the best chance that I have so that I don’t regret it later.”
Marino’s comeback is still in the early stages. She began training at the start of September with the aim of playing in a duo of ITF tournaments in Saguenay and Toronto before playing some low-level events in South Africa. Starting her comeback at Saguenay brings back fond memories for Marino. In 2010 she defeated Alison Riske to become the first and only Canadian winner of the event, which is now categorized as a $60,000 tournament.
“It’s not just winning, it’s also the people there who are always very friendly.” She explained.“I stayed in housing there and made some connections and I think that to go back and revisit a place that I hold dear is a good place to start.”
‘I just want to be happy’
Once a top-40 player, Marino is not setting out any goals for her return. Instead the focus in on her enjoyment of the game. She continues to be open about her mental health struggles and regularly consults with a psychologist. Inspiring many that have been in a similar scenario to her.
“I don’t have any ranking goals or result goals right now, I just want to go in and enjoy the process and come at it from a different place than I was before. I just want to be happy to be on court and compete, that’s all that matters to me.”
Four-and-a-half years have passed since the Toronto-born player played her last match on the tour. Losing in the first round of qualifying at the 2013 Memphis Open. The women’s tour has evolved since then, but Marino remains confident that her own game has not disappeared.
“I think that my game is pretty still the same style: big serve, big forehand. I’m trying to work on mobility a little bit.” She revelled. “Obviously being a tall player, people are going to pick on that. I’m adding a few more tools to the toolbelt, but it’s still quite early, so it’s hard for me to say if anything is too different, but I’m still trying to hit it hard.”
Marino, who has won five ITF titles, has been ranked as high as 38th in the world. In 2011 she reached her first and only WTA Final in Memphis. Overall, she currently has a main draw win-loss record of 155-81.
The Saguenay Open will get underway on Monday.
