Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova became the fifth top 10 seed to exit the US Open in the first week yesterday when she was knocked out by Serbian world No145 Aleksandra Krunic.
Third seeded Kvitova lost the third round tie 6-4, 6-4 to the pintsized 21-year-old from Belgrade, who came through qualifying and had never won a match at a major before this year’s event.
Kvitova joins second seed Simona Halep, No4 Agnieszka Radwanska, sixth seed Angelique Kerber and eighth-seeded Ana Ivanovic in failing to make the fourth round.
The 24-year-old Kvitova dropped serve five times and committed 34 unforced errors against the 5ft 4in Krunic, who divides her time between the pro tour and studying for a university economics degree.
“Of course, I didn’t expect to win,” said Krunic. “I just told to myself, ‘it’s still on her, you still have nothing to lose’.
“I really focused my 100 per cent not to think about anything that is happening – about the court, about so many people, about Petra. I wanted to be myself on court, play as long as possible.
“It was an honour to play on the same court as Petra, she’s a great champion. I watched both her wins at Wimbledon.”
Krunic said she tried not to think about nerves even as a 4-2 lead in the second set was swallowed up by Kvitova who pulled level at 4-4.
But the slender Serbian broke for 5-4 and claimed her famous win on a second match point when another Kvitova forehand sailed wide.
“On match point I thought ‘don’t serve a double fault’. I just wanted to keep the ball in until she missed,” added Krunic who will next face either former world No1 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus or Russian Elena Vesnina for a place in the quarter-final.
Kvitova, who could have become the new world No1 had she won the tournament and Serena Williams failed to make it to the quarter-finals, said: “She played really unbelievable tennis and she put a lot of balls back … almost all of them.
“I was trying to fight and fighting every point, but it was so difficult. It wasn’t really my day.”
