Petra Kvitova pulls out of Stuttgart Open due to injury
Petra Kvitova has pulled out of the upcoming Stuttgart Open due to a right foot injury. This would come as particularly bad news for Kvitova's fans given her recent run of good form.
In the first week of April, Kvitova made her return to the top 10 of the WTA singles rankings for the first time since 2021. The Czech tennis veteran won her 30th WTA singles title in Miami, Florida.
Starting the tournament as the 15th seed, Kvitova beat all odds to overcome the in-form and reigning Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in the summit clash. In fact she dropped just one set all tournament, in the quarterfinals.
The 33-year-old turned to social media to break the news of her withdrawal from the WTA 500 tournament in Baden-Württemberg. Uploading a story on Instagram, Kvitova revealed that the injury to her right foot is still not completely healed.
She then wished luck to all the participants at the event and expressed hope of being injury-free soon.
"I came here to Stuttgart hoping to be ready to play, but unfortunately the pain in my right foot is still bothering me, and I know that I won't be able to compete at 100 percent. I wish everyone here a great tournament and hope to be back to full health soon," Kvitova wrote on her Instagram stories.
Kvitova would have faced Anastasia Potapova in the opening round if she had played. Potapova will now face Petra Martic, a qualifier.
Petra Kvitova won the Stuttgart Open in 2019
Petra Kvitova won her first and only Stuttgart Open title in 2019. That season started off really well for the 33-year-old as she reached back-to-back finals at the Sydney International and the Australian Open, winning the former.
At the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Kvitova received a bye in the first round of the event. She then beat Greet Minnen, a qualifier from Belgium, 6-1,6-4.
Kvitova followed that up with a hard-fought victory over Anastasija Sevastova in the quarterfinals. She then beat sixth seed Kiki Bertens in the semifinals, before getting the better of Anett Kontaveit in the summit clash.
Petra Kvitova also defeated Jennifer Brady and Maria Sakkari in 2020 to advance to the quarterfinals, where she fell to Elina Svitolina. But at the 2021 Stuttgart Open, the veteran lost in the first round of the event.