Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova has announced the 2025 season will be her last as a professional tennis player, with the US Open set to be her final tournament.
The Czech won Wimbledon in 2011 and 2014 and finished runner-up at the Australian Open in 2019, reaching a high of world No 2 over the course of her lengthy career.
She won 31 titles, including the WTA Tour Finals in 2011, and won Olympic bronze for the Czech Republic in 2016, as well as lifting six Billie Jean King Cup trophies.
Writing on social media, Kvitova said: “Growing up in my hometown of Fulnek and hitting the first tennis balls with my father on the local courts, I never imagined becoming a professional tennis player, being able to travel the world, and playing in the most beautiful stadiums around the world. And sure enough...somehow all of that became a reality, and so much more.
“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. I therefore wanted to share with you that 2025 is my last season on tour as a professional. 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.”
One of the top players of the last decade, Kvitova’s huge, lefty serve and powerful groundstrokes made her particularly imperious on grass. She beat Maria Sharapova in straight sets for her maiden grand slam title at SW19, before lifting the Venus Rosewater Dish for the second time in 2014, overcoming Eugenie Bouchard in straight sets.
Kvitova’s lengthy and successful career may yet have yielded more titles had she not suffered a horrific attack during a break-in at her home in the Czech Republic in the 2017 off-season, resulting in serious injuries to the tendons and nerves in her dominant left hand. She returned to action that May, a month ahead of schedule, but slipped out of the top 20 over the course of a difficult season.
She came back to near her best in 2019, reaching the final in Melbourne before losing to Naomi Osaka, and clinched the Miami Open title in 2023, her biggest title in five years, before taking the 2024 season off to have son Petr.
The 35-year-old returned from tennis earlier this year after maternity leave and has been on the comeback trail, losing in a hard-fought first-round battle with Beatriz Haddad Maia at Queen’s last week, before withdrawing from the Nottingham Open with a hip injury.
She has earned a wildcard to Wimbledon this summer and added that while she did not yet know her calendar for the US hard-court swing, she intends to formally finish her playing career at the US Open, where she reached the quarter-finals twice.
“While no such decision is ever easy to make, for me this is a happy moment!” she continued. “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. Through all these years, I am so incredibly thankful for the unwavering support of my family, my closest friends, my team, and all the incredible fans that have always supported me around the world over all these years.
“I could not have asked or wished for anything more - tennis has given me everything I have today, and I will continue to be forever grateful to this beautiful sport that I love,” she concluded.
