LA JOLLA -- She never actually used the word "retirement," but when Lindsay Davenport announced that she was pregnant in December 2006, it certainly seemed as if her tennis obituary would soon be written.

"I can't imagine playing again," Davenport told ESPN.com at the time. "… I feel like the second part of my life is about to begin."

As it turns out, not even motherhood could pull Davenport away from the sport she loves, the sport she has played since her childhood in Palos Verdes.

Only three months after giving birth to son Jagger -- no, she's not a big Rolling Stones fan -- last June, Davenport returned to unleashing her trademark thunderous ground strokes en route to winning the first tournament of her comeback at Bali, Indonesia.

Today, Davenport, a Murrieta Valley High graduate, will play her first match on American soil since the 2006 U.S. Open when she leads the U.S. team against Germany in the quarterfinals of the Fed Cup at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club.

"I never would have thought that it would have gone as well as it has so far," Davenport said recently. "I just didn't think that athletically I'd be able to rebound as well as I have. My body has felt really great since Jagger was born."

Paradoxically, Davenport says she feels healthier post-pregnancy than she did leading up to it, when a series of nagging injuries -- including a bulging disc -- caused her to consider hanging up her racket as early as 2004.

That would have marked a bitterly premature exit from tennis for Davenport, a late-blooming star who has won three Grand Slam titles and ended four seasons (most recently in 2005) as the world's top-ranked player.

Now, at 31, Davenport is enjoying tennis more than ever. Her game isn't too shabby, either.

Starting with the Bali event in September, Davenport captured three tournament crowns and compiled an overall singles record of 19-1 before a decisive loss to Maria Sharapova in the second round of the Australian Open last month reminded her that she's not all the way back yet.

Still, a rout at the hands of the dynamic Sharapova -- who dismantled No. 1 seed Justine Henin 6-4, 6-0 in the quarterfinals on the way to the title -- is nothing to be ashamed of, especially for a woman with a 7-month-old son sitting in the stands.

"I think it's amazing," said Anna-Lena Groenefeld, a player on the German Fed Cup team. "You can see she's really having fun out on the court, so it's great to have her back on the tour."

Added U.S. Fed Cup coach Mary Joe Fernandez: "I can't believe that Supermom is back. I can't believe Lindsay is playing and playing so well."

Davenport plans to enter two of the three remaining Grand Slams -- she will skip the French Open, the only major she has never won, to limit Jagger's overseas travel -- but it wasn't those prestigious tournaments that drew her back to the WTA Tour in the first place.

She grew up with a greater appreciation for the Olympics than the average pro tennis player -- her father, Wink, was a member of the U.S. Olympic volleyball team in 1968 -- and she found the prospect of the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing to be mighty enticing.

"That was the absolute first thing I thought of, that I really would like to have a chance to go back and represent the United States in the Olympics," said Davenport, who won a gold medal in 1996 at Atlanta and still regrets skipping the 2004 Games in Athens.

An unabashed, flag-waving patriot, Davenport also eagerly signed on for the Fed Cup, which she hasn't competed in since 2005 and the U.S. hasn't won since 2000. Of course, it helps that the first round is only a short drive from her home in Irvine, where she lives with her husband, Jon Leach, and Jagger.

Should the Americans defeat Germany -- and they're heavy favorites to do so -- Davenport will do her best to recruit Venus and Serena Williams for a likely semifinal matchup against defending champion Russia, headlined by Sharapova.

"It would be a huge, huge thing if we could get both Venus and Serena, but even one of them would make the team a really formidable opponent," Davenport said. "I don't think anybody would want to face us."

The combination of motherhood and high-level athletics is increasingly common -- former San Diego Spirit defender Joy Fawcett continued playing soccer after giving birth to three girls -- but not so much in tennis. This is a sport, after all, in which Tracy Austin and Jennifer Capriati rose to prominence in their early teens, and former world No. 1 Kim Clijsters retired last year at only 23.

"Women's tennis players start at a very young age," Davenport said. "A lot of them quit in their 20s, then go have a kid. It's not easy."

Davenport can attest to that. Traveling to tournaments, which was once a simple matter of tossing her rackets and other gear into a bag, now involves the meticulous assembly of bottles and formula and diapers. Training must revolve around Jagger's nap schedule.

The simple joy of motherhood, however, makes the hassle worth it.

"I think it's been the greatest thing for me," she said. "There's not really anything for me to stress about in tennis. I have my time on court where I focus on the task at hand, but as soon as I'm off, I'm able to play with my son and enjoy life."

Contact staff writer Brian Hiro at b_hiro@hotmail.com.

Fed Cup

What: Quarterfinal match between U.S. and Germany

Where: La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club

When: Today, noon, singles; Sunday, 10:30 a.m., reverse singles and doubles

Tickets: Still available by calling (888) 334-8782 or online at www.ticketmaster.com. Prices range from $60 to $300 for both days.

TV: Tennis Channel