Czech tennis champion Petra Kvitová announces plans to retire after US Open
Former world No. 2 and two-time Wimbledon champion, Petra Kvitová, announced that she will retire from professional tennis after the upcoming US Open in August. In the course of her 19-year career, the 35-year-old Czech star won 31 singles titles.
Kvitová’s decision to hang up the racket comes little over 5 months after her return to the courts, following a year-long hiatus and birth of her first child – son Petr.
At the end of June, Kvitová is set to compete at Wimbledon, where she first burst onto the tennis scene, becoming the first player born in the 1990s to win a major title in 2011. She went on to win the WTA Tour Finals - the most significant tennis event in the women's annual calendar - that same year.
“I am excited and very much looking forward to soak in the beauty of playing The Championships, Wimbledon one more time, a place that holds the most cherished memories in my career for me,” she writes on Instagram.
In her message Kvitová also thanks for the “unwavering support” she received throughout her decorated professional journey, starting in 2006, and says she is prepared for the next step:
“As with all phases in life, there comes a day that it is time for a new chapter, and that time for me has come now. While no such decision is ever easy to make, for me this is a happy moment! I will leave the sport with the biggest smile on my face – the same smile you’ve seen from me on and off court throughout my whole career.”
Adding to her WTA accolades, Kvitová took bronze at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. As part of the Czech team at the Billie Jean King Cup (formerly known as Fed Cup), she collected 6 titles between 2011 and 2018 – most of any player since the 1980s.
