DPA/Halle, Germany


Germany’s Andrea Petkovic aims to rediscover her love for tennis in the 2016 season by playing less than in the past but seeking a place on the Olympic team in Rio de Janeiro.
Petkovic, 28, told dpa in an interview during a training camp in Halle that she was not as close to retiring from the sport as a November interview suggested but that she had a very hard time on and off the court for several months.
The 2014 French Open semi-finalist said that the off-season and a trip to New York with her best friend helped her find her joy for life in general and the sport again.
Petkovic said the downward spiral was “a slow process,” starting with food poising during the Madrid Masters in May which sidelined her for 10 days, and concern about her ill mother later in the year.
“I made things stressful for myself, was afraid to have missed something. To make matters worse my mother wasn’t feeling well. She was operated while I was (playing) in China and so far away. That was very difficult for me. I always felt that don’t want to be here but at home,” she said.
Nothing worked anymore for Petkovic, a normally outspoken, bright and cheerful person who has thrilled fans around the world with her on-court Petko dance but can also recite from Leo Tolstoi’s War and Peace.
The WTA interview hinting at retirement came after a 6-0, 6-0 defeat against Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro in Zhuhai which was the culmination of her woes and saw her finish the year ranked a modest 24th.
“My hunger for adventure was completely gone. I was really most satisfied when I lay on my bed, read a book or watched some dumb series on Netflix,” she said. “I believe I had a hint of a depressive mood.
“It is a period in life where you realise, damn, certain doors in life are closing and won’t open again. I always played tennis. There are a thousand things I wanted to do but which I can’t anymore.
“I can’t become a doctor anymore or a lawyer. I can never have a student’s life like others. And it just hurt me that these doors were closing.”
Petkovic slowly realised during the New York trip that “I am full of energy again. I wanted to do things, go here and there.”
Finishing her tennis career with a double bagel defeat was also not the best idea, and she is now trying to keep the good feeling on the tour as well, under new coach Jan de Witt.
“It is a big aim of mine to play less tournaments and keep the joy and love for tennis. The way I feel now I want to feel on the tour as well. Waking up in the morning and looking forward to the day,” she said.
“Fun and love for tennis is very important for me. Results-wise I have set no goals for myself.”
The upcoming Olympics are another major reason for Petkovic “why I didn’t call it quits. I have never been at Olympic Games and I definitely want to have that experience.”