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Wimbledon winner Kvitová seen courted for Czech state honor

  8:46

Czech Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitová is believed to be in line for a state honor from the country’s tennis mad president

Petra Kvitová has rocketed up the rankings, but her opponent in Saturday's final is looking to get back where she believes she belongs foto: © ČTKČeská pozice

Speculation that Czech Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitová, currently the third-ranked women’s tennis player worldwide, will be honored by her homeland has mounted following news that she was invited to the awards ceremony at Prague Castle presided over by President Václav Klaus, himself a huge tennis fan.

Kvitová, however, has had to refuse the invitation for Friday’s anniversary of the founding of Czechoslovakia in 1918 because she is due on court for the WTA Championships currently being played out in Istanbul between the world’s top players. After taking on world number one Caroline Wozniacki today, Kvitová is due on court Friday to face Bulgarian Agnieszska Radwanska, whom the Czech just replaced in the No. 3 spot.

Czech media have speculated about what sort of recognition Kvitová might be in line for. Thursday’s edition of the daily Lidové noviny pointed out that Klaus’ predecessor, Václav Havel, lost no time in giving Jana Novotná a state honor in 1998 for her service to the country for having taken the Wimbledon singles title that year. What’s more, Havel, the former dissident leader and playwright, is not a tennis fanatic like Klaus, who still plays regularly and invited Kvitová to Prague Castle after her Wimbledon win in July to receive his congratulations in person.

Flying high

Czech women players, with Kvitová leading the pack, have had an unprecedented year behind them, Lidové noviny reported, adding that they had snatched some of the spotlight from traditional tennis superpowers such as the US and Russia in the shadows.

Czech players have this year landed 23 tournament titles, including four at top grand slam events, the paper points out. That is more titles than Russian and US players — although admittedly many of the Czech wins came in second-tier tournaments. ‘In no other country in the world have women tennis players brought such joy as in the Czech Republic.’

“In no other country in the world have women tennis players brought such joy as in the Czech Republic,” the paper drooled. A bit more soberly, it admitted that part of the current Czech strength in the world game results from injuries to top players such as the Williams sisters and Belgium’s Kim Klijsters and the premature withdrawal from the game of stars, such as Belgium’s Justine Henin.

An opportunity for more joy will come from the final of the Fed Cup against Russia in Moscow on Nov. 5–6, the first time that the Czech Republic has reached such a final since the split of the former Czechoslovakia. The Russians, however, are unbeaten at home in Fed Cup games since 2003 and are ranked higher second in the world in the women’s game, compared with the Czech’s third place.

Kvitová is in a squad unchanged from the 3:2 semifinal win against Belgium. And the Czech confirmed that the final will be far from a walkover for the more experienced Russians with her straight sets win over top Russian player Vera Zvonareva in her first game of the Istanbul WTA Championships on Tuesday. Twenty-one year old Kvitová is also undefeated in this year’s Fed Cup campaign.

‘I think we are the underdog. But they had better watch out for what we bring with us.’

A Wimbledon winner, though not one who has enjoyed so much of the limelight as a doubles specialist, Kveta Peschke picked up the title with regular partner Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia.

“I think we are the underdog. But they had better watch out for what we bring with us,” 36-year-old Peschke told the Fed Cup website. “It a great achievement [to get to the finals]. All the players nominated are very happy that we will play here and will try to make the impossible possible,” commented the second ranked women’s doubles player worldwide.

Peschke puts the Czech team’s strength down to its mix of singles and doubles talent and, what’s more, a great spirit within the Fed Cup squad over the last couple of years. “We will do everything we can to win this title,” she added.