Teetering on the edge of defeat, former champion Petra Kvitova‘s Brisbane International campaign is back on track after denying American Danielle Collins in a tight three-setter on Tuesday afternoon.
The two-time Wimbledon champion prevailed 6-7(6) 7-6(6) 6-3 in a three-hour, four-minute battle before a packed Show Court 2 to book a second-round meeting with Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit.
The No.4 seed, a winner at Brisbane International 2011, looked shaky after failing to serve out the opening set at 5-4 and letting three set points slip to concede the opening-set tie-break.
But as the American stepped up to serve for the match at 5-4 in the second set, Kvitova’s experience under pressure shone as she broke to level.
The Czech needed three set points in the second set tie-break to lock the match up at a set apiece at the two-hour, 24-minute mark.
And from there she never looked back, swinging freely on her way to 4-0 in the deciding set before her 36th-ranked opponent could stem the flow of games.