LONDON (AP) — Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova waved goodbye to her favorite Grand Slam tournament Tuesday.
The 35-year-old Czech player, who won at the All England Club in 2011 and 2014, plans to leave the tour after the U.S. Open, which ends in September.
Her Wimbledon farewell was a 6-3, 6-1 loss to 10th-seeded Emma Navarro of the United States on No. 1 Court.
“This place holds the best memories I could wish for,” an emotional Kvitova said in an on-court interview that is usually granted to the match winner. “I never dreamed of winning a Wimbledon and I won it twice. This is something very special.
“I will miss Wimbledon for sure,” she continued. “I will miss tennis, I will miss you fans. But I’m ready for the next chapter in life as well, and I can’t wait to be back as a member.”
Kvitova, who accepted a wild-card invitation, missed last year’s tournament while on maternity leave.
The 24-year-old Navarro said Kvitova has been “an incredible player and obviously won this tournament twice, and then had a kid and came back, which is definitely an inspiring story from her end.”
In 2011, Kvitova beat Maria Sharapova 6-3, 6-4 in the final. Three years later, Kvitova earned her second trophy, defeating Eugenie Bouchard 6-3, 6-0 in the title match.
“I think it’s the best tournament in the world,” she said.
The U.S. Open, she assures, will be her last one.
“I am sure,” Kvitova said, noting it’s not just the toll on her body. “The motivation, it’s different than it was before.”
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