Many years ago, I watched a young Czech woman play in Fed Cup (now Billie Jean King Cup) competition and thought to myself—“if she can control her aggression a bit better, she’s going to be somebody.” That young woman was Petra Kvitova; she learned a lot, and she indeed became somebody—an icon not only of sport, but of grace and resilience.
This week, at the U.S. Open, Kvitova, who is 35 years old, retired from professional tennis. She had intended to retire a year ago, after giving birth to a son, but she decided to go for one more season. The U.S. Open retirement ceremony was low-key, in fitting with the Czech star’s persona, and—while an emotional affair—it wasn’t as poignant as watching the two-time champion leave the Wimbledon court for the last time earlier this summer.
Even in those early Fed Cup days, there was something compelling about Kvitova’s court presence—the big serve, the baseline command, the breathtaking angles, and the full-throated screams of “pojd!” every time she hit a winner. In 2010, a lot of people got to see the Czech star-in-the-making when she reached the semifinals at Wimbledon.
On her way there, Kvitova upset 14th seed Victoria Azarenka and 3rd seed Caroline Wozniacki (delivering bagel sets in both matches). After she won her quarterfinal, she was interviewed about her upcoming semifinal, and she expressed some mild-mannered concern about having to face “The Serena.” Of course, it was a Czech-to-English language thing, but what better title could anyone have given to eventual champion Williams? (In 2012, when asked what music she was listening to, she told the interviewer, “I like The Pink.”)
In 2011, the year after The Serena took her out of Wimbledon, Kvitova became the champion, defeating Maria Sharapova in the final. When she tried to make her way up to the balcony, she was stopped by security—who was this woman, anyway? Three years later, when Kvitova won her second Wimbledon title, allowing Genie Bouchard only three games (bagel included) in the final, everyone knew who she was.
In 2012, Kvitova reached the semifinals of the Australian Open, but was defeated by Maria Sharapova. Many of us thought that the Czech star would eventually win in Melbourne, but it wasn’t to be. She did reach the final seven years later, but lost to Naomi Osaka in a very close match.
Kvitova, though she won both Stuttgart and Madrid (twice) tended to shy away from clay courts. However, in 2020, she reached the semifinals of the French Open, but lost to Sofia Kenin. (In the spring of 2021, I asked her if she was making any special preparations for Paris, and she quickly replied something to the effect of “You know I prefer not to think about it.”)
The U.S. Open was an especially difficult venue for Kvitova because she suffered from asthma and other occasional respiratory conditions (she did eventually get the asthma under better control), and the humidity made it hard for her to function at the level of which she was capable. The best that she ever did in Flushuing Meadows was to reach the quarterfinals in 2015 and 2017.
Shortly before Christmas in 2016, Kvitova’s life was profoundly changed when a violent intruder broke into her apartment and attacked her with a knife. It’s safe to say, I think, that it wasn’t the perpetrator’s best plan to go after a six-foot tall elite athlete—Kvitova gave him quite a fight. However, tendons and nerves in her left hand were cut—the hand that had dominated so many matches and led her to two Wimbledon victories—and her doctors were uncertain about her professional future.
Fortunately, Kvitova—like so many other patients who know when to stop listening to doctors—had other ideas. Her rehab went well, and she was scheduled to return to the tour after a six-month period. But again, Petra had other ideas—she made her return at the 2017 French Open, and what a return it was. She was greeted by a giant kiosk on which were displayed dozens of heartfelt good wishes from WTA players and others in the tennis world. Kvitova would go on to win her first round, and then lose her second round in two tiebreak sets. But any way you looked at it, it was a victory, especially considering the fact that she still didn’t have all of the feeling back in her fingers.
In June—still without full feeling in her left hand, Kvitova won her 20th career title in Birmingham.
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| photo by Daniel Ward |
In 2017, I nominated Petra for the Women’s Sports Foundation’s Wilma Rudolph Courage Award. Among many other things, I said:
I have thought a lot about what it must have felt like: knowing you could have died, knowing that your career hand has been sliced to the bone, knowing that you may never again stand on one side of a net screaming “Pojd!” and rendering other talented players helpless.
But Petra knew more than that: She knew that she had the strength—both within herself, and through the power of the spirit of those who admire and respect her—to transcend a truly horrific experience. That she did it so quickly makes the story even more glorious.
Petra Kvitova won 31 singles titles, nine of which were at the 1000 level, and—a four-time Olympican—in 2016, she won a bronze medal at the Olympic Games. Just as impressive was Kvitova’s role in Fed Cup play—she was a major contributor to the Czech team’s six Fed Cup championships.
She also won the WTA’s Karen Krantzcke award for sportswomanship (I refuse to call the award by its sexist name) an astounding seven consecutive times.
And speaking of her peers’ affinity for Petra—no discussion of the Czech star is complete without mentioning Li Na, who was her best friend on the tour. When Li retired in 2014, Kvitova gave the speech at the ceremony, and it was an excellent, heartfelt speech. When people think of Li Na, they tend to think of her quick and wicked sense of humor, and—to me—that partly explains the bond between her and Kvitova.
The Czech’s wit could be subtle, such as when she posted a photo of her back on social media after one of her famous “P3tra” close three-setters, and wrote, “Glad to have that behind me (and sorry for the blood pressure”). Several years ago, there was a “win lunch with Petra Kvitova” contest, and the winner also got to hit with Petra. The young man who won the contest had his hit, then sat down for lunch. “It’s my backhand that needs work, right?” he asked Kvitova. She looked at him for a moment, then deadpanned, “Everything.”
And who among us can forget Petra’s role as an astronomy expert?
Petra Kvitova will always be remembered and honored for her accomplishments, but some of the greatest “what ifs” in professional tennis will continue to surround her. It’s hard not to wonder how much better she would have done at certain tournaments—including, of course, the U.S. Open—had she not had respiratory challenges. And it’s hard not to wonder how much her professional track was changed by the terrible trauma of 2016.
But even with these challenges, we always knew never to count her out. In 2023, she surprised a lot of people by winning Miami.
Perhaps the biggest mystery of Kvitova’s career was her ranking. In 2011, she rose to number 2 in the world, and that remains her career-high ranking. The next year, in Sydney, she was two wins away from getting the number 1 ranking, and had she defeated Osaka in the 2019 Australian Open final, she would have risen to number 1.
And while Petra Kvitova may leave the sport with a few unanswerable questions attached to her legacy, none of those “what ifs” really matters. Petra was a once-in-a-generation star, as respected and treasured for her kindness and her gentle persona as she was respected and feared for her lefty serve and her laser-like, precisely-angled groundstrokes. Her career, which spanned nineteen years, will always be part of tennis history, and an important part of the amazing legacy that is Czech women’s tennis.
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| photos by Daniel Ward |
