Beware of the Czech!

Followed from the stands by her country's greats Jana Novotna and Martina Navratilova, Petra Kvitova delivered another clinical performance to capture her maiden Grand Slam trophy, easing past Russian Maria Sharapova 6-3,6-4 in the Wimbledon final. 

The Czech has been in ominous form after her surprise run to the semis here last year which ended in a straight sets defeats to then world number 1, Serena Williams. Especially this year, the young Petra has been tremendously successful, winning three titles (i.e. in Brisbane against Petkovic, Paris Indoor against Kim Clijsters and in Madrid against Azarenka). Moreover she got to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open where she lost to Vera Zvonareva and to the fourth round of the French Open where she lost a topsy-tuvy encounter to eventual champion Na Li.

Having lost a nail-biting final in Eastbourne to Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli, Kvitova was one of the favourite at the start of the fortnight. Nevertheless, with the plenitude of big names in the draw, Petra's chance were still relatively low. However, she took full advance of a rather easy bottom half, advancing into the quarterfinals without dropping a set. She did stumble a bit under pressure against Pironkova losing a second set tie-break, but managed to come back strongly in the decider to ensure the win. The same scenario was repeated in the semis, where after a magnificent first set, she toughed it out to eventually put an end to Victoria Azarenka's challenge and win the match 6-1,3-6,6-2. 

In her first Grand Slam final, Kvitova proved rock solid, both mentally and physically, beating an in-form Maria Sharapova to become the first Czech to win a Slam since Novotna's success at the same event in 1998. Having achieved a feat that eludes many of the top ranked ladies, Petra showed she has what it takes to become the next big name in women's tennis. Relying on a cracking serve, huge hitting from both sides and an incredible mental strengthen, she can overshadow the likes of Caroline Wozniacki or Victoria Azarenka who have struggled to achieve Grand Slam success.

photo:  Reuters