Following her initial victory since returning to professional tennis at the Internazionali BNL d`Italia in Rome, Petra Kvitova expressed both relief and a touch of bewilderment.
`It`s somewhat strange that my first win happened here,` she remarked after defeating Irina-Camelia Begu with a score of 7-5, 6-1.
`I`ve never played my top tennis here. But it certainly feels significantly better than losing.`
Kvitova`s last streak of consecutive wins in Rome was a decade prior, when she reached the quarterfinals in 2015.
The former World No. 2 experienced a challenging start to her return, losing her first four matches in Austin, Indian Wells, Miami, and Madrid – a series of results that she finds disappointing. However, her comeback has been marked by an unexpected sense of happiness and fulfillment.
`I was 95% sure I would never come back,` she commented, recalling her final tournament before her maternity leave in Beijing in 2023. `I felt I had had enough of tennis then. I thought, `I can`t do this anymore,` so we decided to try for a baby. I didn`t say anything publicly because it wasn`t a definite decision.`
After her son, Petr, was born last July, that remaining 5% of doubt began to fade. Being unable to be physically active during pregnancy made her eager to pick up a racquet again.
`When I was finally able to do something after pregnancy, I played some tennis, and it felt so incredibly good,` she shared. `I found myself laughing. Every time I hit a shot smoothly, I`d think, `Wowww – it`s still possible.` My fitness isn`t quite where I want it, but in my hands, sometimes it`s still very good.`
This was evident in the match against Begu, where Kvitova lost her serve only once, during her initial attempt to serve out the first set at 5-4. She quickly responded by winning eight of the subsequent nine games. A particular highlight was a stunning backhand down the line, executed after a desperate scramble for a lob.
`I am definitely not as fit as I hoped to be,` she stated. `But my game has been improving even during practice sessions.`
While the act of hitting the ball still brings Kvitova joy, she sighed heavily when discussing the other demands of being a professional player.
`You must train daily, compete, and travel,` she said, her voice taking on a somber tone. `Those are the aspects I don`t particularly enjoy… Practicing, gym workouts, and recovery routines. I`d think, `Oh my goodness, this again?`
Hotel rooms now seem significantly smaller, especially with Petr starting to crawl everywhere and sleeping less. Kvitova and her husband/coach, Jiri Vanek, now prefer renting apartments, providing their son with space to play and a feeling of being at home. Nevertheless, for now, the enjoyment on the court outweighs the necessary grind. Kvitova is not setting specific goals or timeframes for this current phase of her career.
`For however long I continue to find joy in it,` she concluded.
Kvitova is scheduled to play against No. 27 seed Ons Jabeur in the next round. Kvitova holds a 4-2 advantage in their career head-to-head record, though this will be their first encounter on clay.
