Petra Kvitova stuns Garbine Muguruza at US Open

Kvitova beat the sensational Spaniard-recent victor of Wimbledon and Cincinnati-in two sets, 7-6 (3), 6-3.

Venus Williams, of the United States, returns a shot from Carla Suarez-Navarro, of Spain, during the fourth round of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017, in NY.

But against Williams, the 27-year-old will need everything she threw at Muguruza and more.

Muguruza appeared to have re-positioned herself as the new queen of tennis with her Wimbledon title and had raced through her first three matches here.

Venus Williams and Garbine Muguruza are among them and try to reach the fourth round by winning Friday.

Kvitova triumphed despite falling 4-1 behind in the first set and then failing to serve it out in the 12th game. She has a big serve, a big server, of course.

Kvitova’s game is as natural as she is.

Neither player had dropped a set in the tournament going into the fourth-round encounter, and the 64-minute opener did not disappoint as momentum swung both ways. She made an improbable return at the French Open, but even now her hand still hasn’t fully healed, not to mention the psychological scars after such a harrowing episode. In the TV interview after her quarterfinal win, Williams said she planned to come out in her next match “as aggressive as possible”. Muguruza led 4-1 in the opening set but Kvitova responded superbly.

Gabby also had nothing but praise for her Czech opponent. She served for the first set at 6-5, got broken, was down 0-2 in the tie-breaker and yet stole it.

A smash victor then helped the Spaniard consolidate the break before Kvitova started to find her groove, claiming three straight games to return level having wasted three break points in the sixth game. Muguruza found Kvitova’s form astonishing considering what she has been through.

With the Czech double-faulting twice Muguruza had three break points but was unable to take any of them.

An early break for the Spaniard in the second set was quickly handed back, and Muguruza’s forehand would begin to falter – she ended with 16 errors on that side. So imagine Kvitova’s predicament and her pain and the precision she needs to rediscover.

“I worked hard to come back and be here”, Kvitova said. ‘That was one of the motivations to be back. “I don’t really have the best ranking, but on the other hand I know I can play well, which I showed today”.

“I knew how everything was just so tight and very close, every game that we played in the end of the match”. Presented by broadcasters Catherine Whitaker (Eurosport, BBC 5 Live) and David Law (BBC 5 Live, BT Sport), it is produced weekly throughout the year, and daily at the Grand Slam tournaments, in association with Telegraph Sport and Eurosport.