"Everything was stemming from pressure": From food-related challenges to Arthur Ashe fireworks — the Renata Zarazua turning point

Mexican star Renata Zarazúa has made history for her country with her rise on the WTA Tour in recent years. The 28-year-old finished the 2025 season as world No. 81—after having secured the WTA 125 Austin title in her last week of competition, defeating Canadian Marina Stakusic in the final.

Zarazúa recently gave an interview to El País, where she spoke about the difficult moments she went through when she experienced a period of anorexia and eating issues early in her career.

The young Mexican also mentioned the difficulty of finding role models—without big names in her country's tennis history—and noting that some of her role models are even her rivals. In fact, the Mexican named Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek as figures to emulate: “It’s strange to have idols when the next day you might be standing across from them,” she mentioned.

The three-time Challenger champion has a career-high ranking of world No. 51, achieved in November 2024. During 2025, she managed up to three victories in Grand Slam tournaments, the most important of which was undoubtedly the one she achieved at the US Open, when, on the Arthur Ashe Stadium court, she survived a true three-hour battle against the Australian Open champion Madison Keys (world No. 6 at the time).

During her childhood, she balanced tennis with gymnastics, but at 13, she moved to San Antonio, United States, where tennis completely replaced gymnastics. However, the Mexican experienced a dark period when she was still in her junior stage. “I went through a difficult process... I developed anorexia and eating problems.”

As she detailed in her interview with El País, this involved almost two years of hospitalizations and therapies, with her tennis career halted. “It helped me grow, to understand my body... Everything was stemming from pressure.”

In the last couple of years, she has managed to enter WTA-level tournaments and make a name for herself against strong rivals. Her breakthrough at the US Open attracted attention, with a large Mexican audience having the possibility of seeing one of their own on the main court of the tennis world: Arthur Ashe Stadium, facing one of the local favorites like Madison Keys.

“I told my mom: ‘I’m very scared. I don't want to go out and play’,” Zarazúa recalled. “I was afraid of losing by a wide margin, of freezing up, of feeling like I wasn't enough.” Her mother comforted her: “‘Enjoy it, no one is going to remember it [if you lose badly].’”

Things turned out to be one of the most notable matches of the tournament. An error-prone Keys committed up to 14 double faults and struggled with her serve, but she faced a Zarazúa who knew how to cause problems from the back of the court. The American took five breaks, compared to six for the Mexican, who ended up closing out the victory 6-7 [10-12], 7-6 [7-3], 7-5.

“It was one of the best moments of my career because I felt how much I was enjoying it. Sometimes you set the limits yourself. We have more abilities than we think,” added the world No. 81, who also highlighted the conclusions she drew from her first victory against a Top 10 player: “I have to be braver. Sometimes I play neutral... I would love to be the one going for the win. In my game style, I've become more aggressive and smarter. I’ve had to use my intelligence in these last few months because I’m someone who maybe isn’t super tall, isn't super strong, and I have to use my weapons.”