She revealed her plans to come back to tennis weeks before her 35th birthday, and played her first match at a WTA 250 in Austin, Texas after a month of intense training.
“It was back to normal, unfortunately,” joked Kvitova, who said she prefers tennis to the tournaments. “I was coming back after 6 p.m. every day, not seeing my son for more than an hour before he would go to sleep. It was very sad, and of course practicing, gym, recovery. I thought I was like, ‘Oh my god, really? I want this again?’
“I’ve been doing it my whole life, basically, so it’s very natural. Still, it’s a lot of work I have to put in because I’m not where I wanted to be. It’s taking some time.”
Her first four matches ended in defeat, but a return to the Foro Italico came with an ironic change in fortune. Despite only making two quarterfinals in eight previous attempts, she nonetheless earned her first win on Grand Stand Arena, a 7-5, 6-1 win over Irina-Camelia Begu.
