'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
It has been a difficult 24 hours for Petra Kvitova, who battled past an inspired Wang Xiyu in a late-night thriller at the China Open only to find herself on court again for her next match the next evening.
The Czech's punishing scheduling that saw her play both her opening two-matches with very little time apart comes in the backdrop of multiple other first-round matches still being pending.
Kvitova, who went down fighting in the second round against Liudmila Samsonova, looked visiibly drained in her match, battling exhaustion that came with the three-hour titanic tussle the previous night.
The southpaw criticsed the schedule after her match on social media, putting out statement about the "far from ideal" situation. Kvitova said that she has played the sport with respect and was not one to get irked by such things so easily, but felt strongly about this particular issue.
"Far from ideal to finish my match at the @ChinaOpen, at 1am and then be back on the schedule at NB 5:30pm the next day when some first round matches had yet to be played. I have always played the sport with huge respect and rarely speak out, but this time I feel strongly…" Petra Kvitova wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
The former China Open finalist felt that there had to be a "fairer" solution — reitirating that there were multiple players who were yet to play their first macthes — in the post on her social media handle, urging the WTA to "do better" for its players.
"Enough to say that there *has* to have been a fairer option. Please do better for your players @WTA," Petra Kvitova wrote in a separate post.
Petra Kvitova goes down fighting against against Liudmila Samsonova at China Open
Petra Kvitova suffered a 6-4, 7-5 defeat at the hands of Liudmila Samsonova in her second-round match at the China Open, bringing her Asian swing to an early end.
The Czech started the match slow, going down a break early. She, however, continued to battle hard and recovered from a break defecit on multiple occasions, but the Russian was able to close out the match in two tight sets.
Kvitova had outlasted home hope Wang Xiyu in a marathon during the opening-round action ar the China Open, coming through 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-3 after three hours and six minutes on court.
Whether the reigning Miami and Berlin champion will play at any more tournaments in the remainder of the 2023 season is uncertain.
