Becoming the No. 1 player in the world is the furthest thing from Petra Kvitova’s mind as she hopes to continue her rich vein of form on the clay-courts of Charleston.
Kvitova, who was on a 14 match winning streak, equaling the longest undefeated run of her illustrious career before she was beaten by 16-year-old Amanda Anisimova of the United States in Indian Wells is eyeing a third title of the year at the Volvo Car Open in Charleston. However, the former World No. 2 made it absolutely clear that although she would be extremely happy if she achieved the top rank in the WTA rankings, it wasn’t her focus right now.
Speaking to Sport360, Kvitova said: “I still do have the goal to be there, I think somewhere inside me it’s still there but on the other hand I’m not really focusing on anything like that. It’s changed a little bit.”
On her return to the top 10, Kvitova explained: “It’s tough to say. I think the first time when I got there it was something special for sure. I was young, playing well, it was in Madrid, I remember that match. This time for sure it’s totally different.”
“When I came back I wanted to play well and I’m really happy it’s happening and it’s showing in the rankings as well which is great.”
When she was asked what the source of her strength was, Kvitova replied: “I think it’s from the heart. The fighter inside me, I never give up anything, I think that’s probably the thing where I’m the strongest.”
“When I was practicing with my father, he taught me as well how to be a fighter. It’s tough to explain how but for example when I played tournaments as a kid, he never really said that I played badly or something, but he always was focusing on how I was behaving on the court and if I gave up like one ball or something, he would get really angry. I didn’t want him to get angry, so probably he taught me how to be strong somehow.”
When she was questioned if anything has changed since the 2016 knife attack, which threatened her career, the Czech said: “I love the game itself. You’re out there alone and it’s all on you. You decide if you’ll go down-the-line, or cross-court, what you’re going to do, reading your opponent, it’s like chess a little bit, that’s what I love.”
