"Not sure if I was going for an ace, but I definitely surprised her" - Petra Kvitova recalls 2011 Wimbledon Championship point against Maria Sharapova
Petra Kvitova lifted the first of her two Wimbledon Championship titles in 2011, beating five-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova in the final.
Kvitova produced a masterclass of attacking tennis to outclass the Russian on the day, winning in straight sets 6-3, 6-4. The then 21-year-old finished the match with a memorable ace down the center of the court.
Petra Kvitova used her go-to slice serve from the ad-court out wide to a great degree of success in the tournament. The Czech player managed to surprise Sharapova by going down the center to seal the first of her two Wimbledon titles.
Speaking to the Tennis Channel in a recent interview, Petra Kvitova recalled the match point and the ace. The Czech said hitting the ace was a "special" moment for her, adding that she saw Sharapova covering the wide serve and decided to surprise her by going in the opposite direction.
"Well, I mean, I didn't care about the ace. I was just happy that I made the match point," Kvitova said. "But yeah, it's been, it's been great, twice. So there's something really unusual about it and I'm really happy for that."
"The ace was special for sure," she continued. "You know, because Maria was wide on the court and I said, okay, I'm gonna surprise her. So, I'm not sure if I was going for an ace, but yeah, I surprised her definitely."
"I just admire her, she is just the best woman in my life" - Petra Kvitova on her mother
During the same interview, Petra Kvitova was also asked to name a person who, if given a chance, she wanted to switch places with for a day.
The Czech responded by saying that she would switch places with her mother because she had immense admiration for her. She then went on to describe her mother, Pavla Kvitova, as the best woman in her life.
"Um, I wanted to say my mom, but she has a difficult life as well being with my dad all the time," Kvitova joked. "I just admire her, I mean, she, you know, was working her whole life. Now she's retired, same with my dad. But she is just the best woman in my life."
Shifting focus to things that she likes to do to keep herself busy during tournaments, Kvitova said she enjoys going out for coffee or shopping and also spends time reading a book or watching a TV series.
"It's tough sometimes, especially when we are in bubbles," Kvitova said. "But if we are not, I love to go for the coffee or shopping, yeah. I'm watching some series as well and reading books."