Two-time former Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova has announced she is “totally ready” to retire at 35 following her U.S. Open campaign this summer – nearly a decade after surviving a horrific knife attack.

The Czech star secured Grand Slam victories at the All England Club in 2011 and 2014, but her world was devastated when an intruder with a blade assaulted her in her own home in 2016.

The attack resulted in severe cuts to her left hand, requiring emergency surgery to save her tennis career. Incredibly, she fought back to compete at Roland Garros the following season.

Speaking to The Guardian, Kvitova disclosed the traumatic aftermath involved ongoing nightmares and “really bad flashbacks” from the horrifying experience, though she conveyed pride in her strength.

“I knew I was a big fighter on the court but at that time I realized how I am an even bigger fighter in a totally different version of myself,” she said.

“That was great, even though it was very tough to play tennis. I cried on the court, I had really bad flashbacks, I was having nightmares.

“So it really wasn’t easy. It took a while, but it’s all good now. There was a big question mark, can I play tennis or not? And I could. It was my second career. It was amazing.”

The tennis star revealed her willingness to step away from the game, despite her passion for the sport, to dedicate more time to her family. “I’m totally ready,” she declared.

“I’m not regretting anything. I still love tennis but everything else, waiting for the practices, waiting for the car, waiting for a match, it’s just tiring. And having a son, it’s a totally different life. I just want to spend more time with him as well.”

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Kvitova’s comeback after her knife attack has been nothing short of extraordinary. In what she calls her “second career”, she made it to the quarter-finals of the U.S. Open in 2017, the final of the Australian Open in 2019 and the semi-finals of the French Open in 2020.

Looking back on her career, she wondered if she could have ever reached the world No 1 ranking – but maintains that such an accomplishment “would not make me happier”.

“I think I could [have won more],” she continued. “But what can I do? I played in the final of the Australian Open [in 2019], I lost to Naomi Osaka when she played incredibly in the third set. There are always a few question marks in the number of Grand Slams.

“Being world No 1, that’s what I’m missing. Probably that’s the thing I would love to have. But if it’s not happened, it’s not happened. It would not give me a better life or make me happier.”