Petra Kvitova has revealed that she will take a break from tennis following her third-round Wimbledon exit to Jelena Jankovic this evening.
The reigning champion fell some way short of reproducing her achievements of 12 months ago after losing to the Serbian 3-6 7-5 6-4 on Centre Court.
The second seed told BBC Sport that it "hurt" to be dumped out of her "favourite tournament" so early, but vowed to come back stronger after a sabbatical.
"It hurts because I really love to play here.
"This is my favourite tournament of the year for me and I have some really beautiful memories here, but today will not be among them.
"You need time to get over a result like this. I don't know how long it will take but I will have some time off from tennis, clear my mind and come back fresh again soon."
She beat Eugenie Bouchard in the final last year for what was her second Wimbledon title.
Written by
Shane Callaghan
Shane Callaghan
