Petra Kvitova remains winless since returning to the tour after maternity leave, suffering a 6-4, 3-6, 4-6 defeat to France’s Varvara Gracheva in the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.
The 34-year-old, back from a 17-month break after giving birth to her son Petr, fought through a two-hour, 23-minute battle but ultimately ran out of steam. Gracheva, ranked No. 70, rebounded after losing the first set, breaking Kvitova to take a 4-2 lead in the second before leveling the match.
Despite rallying from 3-1 down to 3-3 in the deciding set, Kvitova lost serve at 4-4, allowing Gracheva to serve out the match. The French player now advances to face rising Russian star Mirra Andreeva in the second round.
After her victory, Gracheva paid tribute to former world No. 2 Kvitova, acknowledging her return to the sport as both a mother and an athlete.
This marks Kvitova’s second consecutive loss since her comeback, following a three-set defeat to Britain’s Jodie Burrage at the ATX Open last month.
Source: Swifteradio.com
