Petra Kvitova owns two Wimbledon titles, so making it to the quarter-finals of a grand slam tournament for the 13th time should not necessarily feel like a big deal to her.
But this was different. Which is why the No.7 seed’s emotions swelled and her eyes watered after she beat China’s Zhang Shuai 6-2 6-4 on Monday at the French Open, where she hadn’t reached the round of eight since 2012.
Poignantly, this was the tournament where Kvitova made her tennis comeback three years ago, following a harrowing knife attack that left her with serious injuries to her racket-swinging left hand and with doubts about whether she’d ever play again.
“My memories. Happy memories … Everything just came back to me,” said the No. 7 seed, who next faces Laura Siegemund, a first-time grand slam quarter-finalist.
“When I’m talking, I’m getting emotional again. It’s been a long ride, definitely. Everything came to my mind – my whole family, people who I loved, (who helped) me through the tough, tough time,” Kvitova said.
“I don’t know, just everything came back.”
Siegemund booked her place in the last eight with a 96-minute 7-5 6-2 win over Spain’s Paula Badosa.
The 32-year-old German’s best run at a slam continues, which was previously a third round appearance at both the Australian and US Opens in 2016.
American fourth seed Sofia Kenin appeared to be unnerved by the cheers of the sparse partisan crowd as she recovered from a wobbly start to reach the quarters with a 2-6 6-2 6-1 victory over France’s Fiona Ferro.
The Australian Open champion, who next faces compatriot Danielle Collins or Tunisian Ons Jabeur, broke into tears after ending the contest.
“The crowd wasn’t the best, which is understandable, but still I wish it would have been a little bit different,” she told a news conference.
“I tried to use that as motivation. Obviously I was not really too happy with how it was going. I knew it’s expected. I understand why. I’m playing a French player, and she’s had a great run here.”
A maximum of 1,000 spectators are allowed per day at Roland Garros amid COVID-19 restrictions, and around 500 attended the match on court Philippe Chatrier, voicing their support for Ferro.