Kvitova stunned after shock defeat

Former Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova ended her Melbourne campaign early on Tuesday, beaten 6-2, 6-2 by Romanian Sorana Cirstea.

“I don’t think I have much to say,” a downbeat Kvitova said after the loss.

“It wasn’t really going my way the whole month. That’s how it is. It’s a sport and I just have to fight through and be better at it.”

Kvitova has seen a big slump in form since arriving in Australia, where she failed to fire at warmup events in Adelaide and Sydney.

“I didn’t play a lot of matches at the beginning of this year,” she said.

“I did have some health issues the whole month as well, so it was tough to practice. It wasn’t really easy this beginning of the season, but the season is long, so I hope that it will turnaround.”

The 31-year-old Czech said she would take a few days to clear her head before restarting her season.

“This loss is very painful, in the first round after like a whole month,” she said.

Peter Rowe

Recent Posts

Tenth time lucky as Li knocks out Sabalenka

American outsider Ann Li produced the upset of her life on Wednesday, taking 10 match points…

2 days ago

Zverev to take over as world No. 1

Alexander Zverev will claim world year-end No. 1 honours for the first time on the…

3 days ago

Grumpy Mac lashes out at player sked complaints

John McEnroe has used a trip to Spain to come down hard on modern player…

6 days ago

Alcaraz back for another 1-Point Slam appearance

Carlos Alcaraz will headline the field as the Australian Open stages its 1-Point Slam for…

1 week ago

Djoko to skip Shanghai after Beijing title miracle

Novak Djokovic is wisely choosing not to tempt fate, with the China Open winner withdrawing…

1 week ago

Djokovic backs into 7th Beijing title as injured de Minaur quits

Novak Djokovic retained his magic touch at the China Open, winning his seventh title without…

1 week ago