Petra Kvitova has insisted that she is not a contender to win the Wimbledon title this year despite her recent success on the grass.
Kvitova, who is a two-time winner at The All England Club, claimed her 31st Tour title at the German Open on Sunday. In the final, she roared her way to a 6-2, 7-6(6), win over Donna Vekic. Earlier in the tournament she also scored straight sets wins over Caroline Garcia and Karolina Pliskova. The Czech has now won 12 out of her last 13 matches on the grass which dates back to Eastbourne last year.
Despite her success on the surface, Kvitova still doesn’t see herself as a favourite for the Wimbledon title.
“It’s always different playing a Grand Slam and playing the other tournaments,” she said during an interview with dw.com.
“There’s a lot of pressure over there. I’m going to try to enjoy it. If I play good tennis, who knows what can happen. I’m really happy with this week (in Berlin), that’s important for me. We will see what happens.”
It was 12 years ago when the 31-year-old won Wimbledon for the first time in her career after defeating Maria Sharapova in the 2011 final. Three years later she won the Grand Slam for a second time. However, since her second triumph, Kvitova hasn’t gotten beyond the fourth round of the tournament. Out of her seven most recent appearances, she failed to win back-to-back matches in four of them.
One thing for certain is that the world No.9 still has a passion for tennis after what has been an at times rollercoaster career. In 2016 she underwent extensive surgery on her hand which got cut by a knife following an attack by an intruder in her apartment. Since her comeback to the Tour in 2017, she has won 12 WTA trophies.
“12 years, wow!” Kvitova responded when reminded of the year she first won Wimbledon. “It’s a long time. It feels like yesterday, time is flying. A lot of things changed in my life, on the court and off the court. I’ve been through some very tough times, I didn’t know if I would come back or not.
“I think I am more mature. I still love playing on grass, that didn’t change luckily. I still love tennis and still have the motivation. That’s important with age, you have more experience and you think a little bit more.”
This year will be Kvitova’s 15th main draw appearance at Wimbledon. Among active players on the WTA Tour, only Venus Williams has won more titles than her.