Petra Kvitova happy from her performance in 2012 despite ranking slip – Tennis News
World number eight, Petra Kvitova, commenced the season with a victory at Hopman Cup and reached the semi-final at the Apia Sydney International to make a strong statement for the Australian Open. She reached the last four stage
of the year’s first Grand Slam at the Rod Laver Arena and carried the momentum into the second month of play with a couple of Federation Cup victories against a strong German side.
However, the in-form Czech witnessed a terrible slip in her form, coupled with some injuries that forced her to fall victim to early round upsets in several tournaments. The third round loss at Indian Wells, along with a first-match
exit in Miami deteriorated her ranking.
She regained some momentum at the clay court season; reached the semi-final at Stuttgart, quarter-final in Rome and the last-four showdown at the French Open. She started her title defence at Wimbledon Championships and successfully
reached the quarter-final stage where the 31-year-old American, Serena Williams, hammered her in straight sets.
The 22-year-old Kvitova reached the last-eight of the Olympics and won her first title of the season at the Rogers Cup in Montreal. She reached the semi-final at Cincinnati before capturing the second trophy of the year at New
Haven.
However, it was just the beginning of the downfall that witnessed early exits at the US Open, Tokyo and Beijing. She withdrew from the WTA Championships due to illness but returned back for a Federation Cup final tie to retain
the title.
Commenting about her 2012 performance, the former world number two said, “I think it was a solid year. Of course, I didn't have the success I had in 2011, but I knew it would be tough to repeat that. I had some really consistent
results and also had good results where I hadn't done well in the past. For example, I reached the semi-finals on clay at Roland Garros [the French Open] for the first time, which was a big step for me. I also did well in the U.S. Open Series. Yes, my ranking
slipped a bit, and I had some bad luck with injuries and illness, but I am happy overall.”
She is working hard to stay fit and improve her stamina for the upcoming season. She is hoping to climb up again and contest for the number one spot in the world in 2013.
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