Table of Contents
- Tennis great Petra Kvitova officially ended her tennis career after a first-round defeat at the US Open on Monday
- The two-time Wimbledon champion bid her emotional farewell to the tennis world on a sparsely-filled Grandstand Stadium in New York
- She was one of the top female tennis players in the early 2010s and made history in 2011 by becoming the first player born in the 1990s to win a Grand Slam (Wimbledon) title after defeating Maria Sharapova
Tennis great Petra Kvitova officially ended her tennis career after a first-round defeat at the US Open on Monday. The two-time Wimbledon champion bid her emotional farewell to the tennis world on a sparsely-filled Grandstand Stadium in New York.
Kvitova had announced in June that she will take part in her final tournament as a professional at Flushing Meadows this month. The 35-year-old Czech player, who informed the public of her intention to retire via X (formerly Twitter), said she never imagined she would ever become a professional player and get to tour the world because of tennis.
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Kvitova initially wanted to skip the US Open tournament due to illness but decided to show up and challenge for a Grand Slam in her last public appearance as a player. Speaking to the press on Monday, she revealed that she contacted COVID-19 three weeks before her match at the US Open.
Petra Kvitova has officially ended her professional tennis career following her first-round defeat at the US Open on Monday. The former world number two had revealed her plans to retire in June prior to the Wimbledon tournament. Photo/ Yardbarker.
The disease made her week, which explains why she struggled on the court against France’s Diane Parry. She suffered a 6-1 6-0 loss.
“Yeah, my physicality wasn’t great. My lungs are not really working yet, but I hope it will be OK when I’m not practicing now. I wanted to be playing here, to finish the season, like, with a grand slam and not because the Covid caught me.” Kvitova said.
Petra Kvitova Career Highlights
Kvitova began her professional tennis career in 2006 at ITF. She was one of the top female tennis players in the early 2010s and made history in 2011 by becoming the first player born in the 1990s to win a Grand Slam (Wimbledon) title after defeating Maria Sharapova. Three years later, she won the Wimbledon title once again after beating Eugenie Bouchard in the final.
Outside the WTA, Kvitova also participated in Olympics four times and won bronze in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. However, the Czech’s home was attacked that same year and she was stabbed in her left hand, with the intruder damaging her tendons and nerves.
There were fears that the injury could bring her career to an end but she overcame it and made a comeback to tennis in June 2017. Two years later, she reached the final of the Australian Open.
Petra Kvitova won a total of 31 WTA titles in her professional career. The 35-year-old last triumphed in Berlin two years ago. Photo/ BBC.
Kvitova has always been a fan favorite among tennis fans because of her booming left-handed serve and huge groundstrokes. However, her performance in recent years has declined and she last reached the quarter-final of a Grand Slam in 2020. She won her last WTA title in 2023 in Berlin, Germany.
Kvitova gave birth to her son in July 2024 and took 17 months away from the sport, returning earlier this year in February. After becoming a mother, it took her five tournaments to record her first win, which was against Irina-Camelia Begu in May in Rome.
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The Czech believes that the two Grand Slams she won are her greatest achievements as a tennis player. She claimed a total of 31 WTA Tour titles and reached a career-high world number two ranking.
