Kvitova leads Czech Republic to third Fed Cup title in four years

PRAGUE—The only women left playing tennis in 2014 were eight players on two teams: Germany and the Czech Republic. After pushing for ten months, the players pushed hard once more, hoping to end a season of highs and lows on one, final, happy note.

The Czechs, now Fed Cup champions in three of the past four years, went (stayed, really) home thrilled. Led by Petra Kvitova, the Wimbledon champion stole the show, overwhelming Andrea Petkovic 6-2, 6-4 on day one and edging Angelique Kerber in nearly three hours, 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-4, in a dramatic, Cup-clinching contest.

With the title within grasp, Kvitova was up and she was down, finding the corners and watching some of her shots go way wide. But the jammed crowd of 13,000 kept cheering her on, practically begging her to find the court. The court was extremely fast, to Kvitova’s liking, but fellow lefty Kerber knew her well. The ninth-ranked German baseliner believed that she could read her opponent, return her shots, and then grind her down. But she also knew that she had to play more aggressively—which she did—but it wasn’t enough to shake the tie’s top player.

Lucie Safarova, the Czech Republic’s second singles player, doesn’t hit as heavy as Kvitova, but she’s displayed an attacking mentality throughout her Fed Cup career, most notably two years ago in the final against Serbia, when she took out Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic. She reprised her effort against Kerber on Saturday, smacking her way to a 6-4, 6-4 win. Kerber surrendered early leads in both sets, but folded; she called her performance “stupid,” promising that she would play much better against Kvitova on Sunday.

In that respect Kerber succeeded, but she could not climb over the wall despite her valiant effort. Now 24 years old, Kvitova—a two-time Grand Slam champion with a 23-7 Fed Cup record—says she is much more mature that previous years. She realizes that she cannot play perfect on every point, but she knows that if she hangs in there, eventually, she will get into a groove.

On Sunday, Kvitova said that she wasn't feeling great physically—she told me later on that she felt tired and had cramps—but that she was going to give it a go, and that Kerber had a real chance if she dictated play. Both of the southpaws love to go after righties’ backhands, but that strategy is moot against one another, so they had to mix it up.

Kerber is faster then Kvitova, but the disparity in their serves is significant, and so it was up to the German to move forward when she could and claim attacking positions. She should have won the first set, holding five set points, but she froze. Kvitova was by no means spectacular (“bad sometimes,” she said), but she was effective, and when she faced set point at 6-5 in the tiebreaker, she swung in her first serve and then stepped forward to bang a forehand into the corner. A point later, the set was hers, and the Czechs were a set from the Fed Cup.

It appeared that Kvitova would end it quickly after going up 3-0 in the second, but Kerber recomposed herself and played faster, sprinting to a 6-4 set win. “Angie always finds something there,” Kvitova said afterward.

Leading 3-0 in the third, it looked like Kerber might have a chance to pull the upset and keep German hopes alive. But when she needed to continue playing aggressively, she saw Kvitova do just that to regain control of the match. The Czech broke Kerber to 3-4 when she pounded a forehand; the German yelled in frustration. Kvitova then nailed three straight excellent serves and it was 4-4.

With a boisterous crowd and both players fist-pumping every point, who would celebrate last? That would be Kvitova, who broke Kerber again with a forehand to go up 5-4.

Kerber would not go away quietly, but facing a fourth match point, her final backhand fell gently into the net. Kvitova leapt as high as she could, celebrating around the court. It has been a long season, with soaring highs and bouts of inconsistency, but to Kvitova it was all worth it.

“It was very emotional, I have no voices,” Kvitova said. “Angie could have won it... I’m always playing and have great atmosphere and everyone supports you and you know, even if you are hurt, you can bring on the court, but you love it and now we have the title.”