• Wimbledon

Kvitova worried by poor grass-court form

ESPN staff
June 25, 2012

ESPN will be providing extensive coverage of Wimbledon, with live scores, commentary and analysis and you can follow it all with our live scorecentre

Reigning champion Petra Kvitova admits her pre-Wimbledon form is a cause for concern, but insists she is feeling positive about her defence after a solid block of training at the All England Club.

The 2012 champion, who beat Maria Sharapova in the final of last year's tournament, has not looked at her best this season despite reaching the semi-finals at both the Australian Open and French Open.

The serve/forehand combination that worked to devastating effect 12 months ago does not appear to be functioning with the same level of potency, while her huge forehand has lacked fluency in recent times.

The Czech, seeded second at SW19, was a shock first-round casualty at the AEGON International in Eastbourne, going down 7-5 6-4 to Russia's Ekaterina Makarova last Tuesday.

Despite her early exit, Kvitova is optimistic ahead of her title defence, pinpointing the extra days she has had to practice at Wimbledon as key to her preparations.

"I'm trying not to think about defending the title here, but I'm sure it will come to my mind when I step on the court," Kvitova, who faces world No. 96 Akgul Amanmuradovashe in the first round, said.

"The preparation hasn't gone very well, as we would have liked to have the same schedule as last year. I lost too early in Eastbourne, but I've practiced here for a few more days. I feel very well, and I can't wait to step onto the court again."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Close

ABOUT COOKIES

To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.

More Info Here Cookie Choices