By Nengi Ernest 

Female tennis players who opt for any fertility protection process like egg freezing will have their rankings protected.

The Women Tennis Association announced this new rule to help support athletes who wish to build a family later to have a balanced family and career goals. The WTA made it clear that it is open to any player ranked in the worlds top 750 who spends more than 10 weeks out of competition. 

This development comes three months after the governing body offered players up to 12 months of paid maternity leave for the first time. The WTA, in a statement, said "Eligible players will receive a Special Entry Ranking (SER), which can be used to enter up to three tournaments, based on the 12-week average of their WTA Ranking from eight weeks prior to the start of their out-of-competition period".

The 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens who previously called for egg freezing to be recognised as a protected ranking decision called it a ground breaking decision by the WTA as it will empower this generation, and future generations to continue with the sports without having to compromise. 

The WTA further said that players will benefit from paid maternity leave and grants for fertility protection through the WTA Maternity fund sponsored by the Saudi Public Investment Fund.