The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
A rare retirement
Shoulder injury forces Kvitova to bow out in quarterfinal
NEW HAVEN — Petra Kvitova isn’t normally the retiring type.
She couldn’t remember the last time she retired from a WTA match — or even if she ever had. Until Thursday night, that is.
Suffering from a sore left shoulder that began bothering her the night before in a three-set win over Zarina Diyas, Kvitova was forced to retire after the first set of her Connecticut Open quarterfinal match with Carla Suarez Navarro.
Suarez Navarro, who won the first set 6-3, advances to play Monica Puig in a semifinal match on Friday at 7 p.m.
Meanwhile, the tournament — which has already had world No. 1 Simona Halep withdraw before it even started and has seen several other notable players retire over the past few days — is now without a three-time champion.
“I’ve played a lot of matches the past couple of days,” Kvitova explained. “I couldn’t really serve as well as I wanted. The service speed wasn’t very high. I tried, but when you’re playing someone like Carla, it’s tough to play if you’re 100 percent. If you’re not ready, it’s tough.”
Suarez Navarro noticed Kvitova wasn’t quite right from the start.
“I was thinking, maybe in the night session, she was tired from (Wednesday),” the Spaniard noted. “I was focused on my game. But sometimes, I think she can serve a little bit faster.”
Kvitova, the third seed and No. 5 player in the world, felt pain in her shoulder after the second set of her eventual win over Diyas on Wednesday night.
She was seen by a trainer at that time, but was able to continue.
“Somehow, I found a way to win the match,” she recalled. “(Thursday), I was hoping it would be better. But, unfortunately, it wasn’t that good.”
Suarez Navarro broke Kivitova in the fourth game and never looked back. After the set was over, Kvitova, a lefthander, was again seen by a trainer, wincing in pain as her left shoulder was tended to. This time, she couldn’t continue.
“It was a great crowd today, and I’m sorry to leave it like that,” said Kvitova, who won this event in 2012, 2014 and 2015. “It’s one of my favorite tournaments ... but I have to look after myself.”
Kvitova joins a long list of withdrawals and retirements this week, including Halep, Ashleigh Barty, Kiki Bertens, CoCo Vandeweghe and Johanna Konta.
“I know Petra, she wants to be good for the U.S. Open,” Suarez Navarro noted. “She was playing a lot of matches in Cincinnati and Montreal, so it’s not easy. I think I was playing well. I’m happy to be in the next round.”
Indeed, Suarez Navarro had never even advanced past the second round in her first four forays into this tournament. This will be her first semifinal of 2018 — a product of some strong play, and a little luck.
Suarez Navarro defeated Barbora Strycova, 7-6 (6), 6-4 in her opening match, then advanced to the quarters on a walkover when Konta withdrew with a viral illness.
“My first match, I played really well,” Suarez Navarro said. “I’ve really enjoyed my time on the court, I think I’ve done a really good job. And (Thursday), it’s the first time I’ve played the night session, it’s a little bit different. I think that I’m focused on my game. I know what I have to do to play well.”
Suarez Navarro has had to win just three sets to win her first three matches.
“Sometimes, it happens,” she added. “We play all these weeks, sometimes it’s difficult to be good in every tournament, every week. (Friday), I have one more opportunity to play my game, to play well, try to enjoy it and try to play my first final of the season.”
Suarez Navarro, ranked 30th in the world, has had success against Puig, a former Olympic gold medalist from Puerto Rico. Suarez Navarro is 4-1 all-time against Puig, with all four wins coming in straight sets.
“I’ve known her for a long time. I know she can play really fast and really aggressive,” Suarez Navarro said. “I have to be focused, like every match. Every match is so tough. She beat Caroline Garcia (Wednesday), a really good player. I know how she can play, but I’ll try to play my game, try to play like (Thursday), and we will see what will happen at the end of the match.”