It is time for Petra Kvitova to return to where she belongs. The Czech tennis player took a leave of 15 months from the sport announcing her pregnancy on New Year’s Day in 2024. After her son’s birth, she promised to return to a WTA 250 tournament in February. Hearing about the Czech player’s return, the fraternity felt overjoyed. However, the most energizing cheer came from Kvitova’s idol, legendary Martina Navratilova who motivated the athlete with a pat on her back.

Kvitova took to her official IG platform to announce her return to the sport at the end of February. She will participate in the 2025 ATX Open in Austin. This Czech player replaced the 2025 Australian Open champion, Madison Keys. Keys couldn’t participate because of the WTA’s new rule that prevents more than one top-10-ranked player from competing in the tournament. Since WTA no. 6 Pegula already confirmed her participation, Keys had to withdraw. This wasn’t a problem when Keys signed up for the event since her rank was 21. After Melbourne, she rose to rank 7, giving Kvitova a chance to participate in her place.

Reflecting on her excitement, Kvitova shared a reel on her IG story, where she was featured saying, “ Hi, everyone, I hope you all had a great start to 2025 so far. I’m here to tell you some exciting news after 15 months being away from tennis and having my baby boy Petr, I’m coming back to the tennis circuit. I really miss tennis and miss competing so I am very looking forward to be back.”

This Czech player also announced her plans to perform at the 2025 Miami Open and the 2025 Indian Wells. Additionally, she thanked her fans for supporting her journey.

Her followers shared Kvitova’s IG reel on various social media platforms. One such tweet grabbed legendary athlete Martina Navratilova’s attention, and she reshared it with an adorable caption for Kvitova. “Welcome back, Champ!” she wrote with one thumbs up and three clapping emojis.

Navratilova always rooted for the Czech player. The former WTA No. 1 player confessed: “I’ve always had a soft spot for Petra Kvitova – after all, she’s a Czech lefty like me – and my admiration and affection for her has only grown due to the way she has fought back to form over the last 12 months.” In fact, the two-time Wimbledon champ’s resilience has impressed Navratilova time and time again.

Kvitova’s potential impressed Navratilova, who believed she had the brilliance to win another Grand Slam in the 2018 Australian Open. “In the absence of Serena Williams, I believe it’s entirely possible Kvitova could end up landing the title at the Australian Open, which begins at Melbourne Park on Monday, and what a story that would be,” Navratilova commented.

Martina’s affection for this Czech grew over time. It was proven especially when Kvitova confessed to receiving a secret message from her Czech idol.

Petra Kvitova recalled Martina Navratilova’s emotional moment during her 2011 Wimbledon final

When Kvitova was playing her 2011 Wimbledon finals, her icon Martina Navratilova was spotted emotional with her eyes full of tears at the Royal Box at Center Court. Remembering the “beautiful emotion,” Kvitova said, “It was the final of 2011. Martina Navratilova was in the Royal Box. This was huge experience for me. Then, of course, sitting in the Royal Box for my final, and I know she was crying when I won.” 

The Czech player added Navratilova’s presence helped her to perform better in that match. Kvitova also spilled beans about her first meeting with the idol.

Apparently, she met Navratilova in the locker room during her first Wimbledon semifinals in 2010. “It was fun to have, to meet her, for sure,” she said. Kvitova’s most heartwarming compliment for Navratilova was acknowledging the latter’s support in her first major win. In an interview with Laureus.com in 2012, Kvitova said, “She is a very nice person to me and I had a good chat with her at Wimbledon. She had some advice for me. She has a lot of experience in her career and she is very smart.”

However, she adorably denied revealing a secret message from Navratilova, choosing to keep it close to her heart. Petra Kvitova’s return to tennis brings a lot of anticipation about her form, especially given her attacking playing style in the past. Her forceful strokes from the baseline brought her first Wimbledon title.

Now, it is time to see if she can perform with such brilliance in Austin – and perhaps mount a challenge to other veterans throughout the season. As she builds momentum, one thing is for sure: Kvitova will be one to look out for.