#Smashtalk: A welcome return

Arguably the best active grass court player in women’s tennis, only a few weeks ago there was doubt whether Petra Kvitova would even be fit enough to compete on her favourite surface. The good news is she’s back – and winning too!

Our #Smashtalk team share their thoughts on Kvitova’s comeback as they dissect the beginning of the grass court season.

Six months today. To celebrate with victory on a tennis court means everything ?? pic.twitter.com/35hqNAQR9h

— Petra Kvitova (@Petra_Kvitova) June 20, 2017

What are your thoughts on Petra Kvitova’s return in Birmingham? 

Vivienne Christie: Three matches in, it’s too early to read too much into Petra’s comeback – especially given that her latest win was over qualifier Tereza Smitkova, who is ranked more than 150 places lower. The positive signs are that Petra’s serve was strong and her customary power is returning; but most exciting of all ahead of Wimbledon is how much she appears to be loving tennis.

Matt Trollope: Petra being back on grass is a sight to behold. And she looked fabulous in a first-round thumping of fellow Czech Tereza Smitkova in just her second event in six months. It’s so heart-warming to see Kvitova back on tour after the trauma she endured in December and if she fires, she’s the best fast-court player out there. Her recent return has timed beautifully with the grasscourt season and I can’t wait to see her at Wimbledon.

Leigh Rogers: How can you not be pleased for Petra? To be able to mark six months since the robbery attack with a grass court victory is a fairytale-like result, but unfortunately it is still a long road back to top. It is important not to get to swept up in the romanticism of the idea of Kvitova being a title contender just yet. One step at a time is a more appropriate approach, making any win at this early stage of her comeback a bonus.

RELATED: Kvitova scores opening round win

What has surprised you most so far about the grass court season?

VC: I’d grown happily accustomed to Roger Federer returning in top form after a break, so I was surprised by his first-round loss to Tommy Haas in Stuttgart. That said, at least he was playing. The biggest shock of the grass season so far is the big-name withdrawals: Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin del Potro at Queen’s, as well as Angelique Kerber, Karolina Pliskova and Maria Sharapova in Birmingham. Lucky for tennis there are also some high-profile comebacks underway.

MT: Donna Vekic winning Nottingham. Once considered a “next big thing”, Vekic had become largely irrelevant on tour, not winning a WTA title in more than three years and failing to advance beyond the second round at any tournament in 2017. But the Croat managed to control her own emotions – even recovering after sobbing and hyperventilating over a bad call in the third set of her semifinal against Lucie Safarova – and won in resounding fashion over No.1 seed and top 10 star Johanna Konta in a compelling final.

LR: The continued rise of the young stars on the WTA Tour. With 21-year-old Anett Kontaveit and 20-year-old Donna Vekic scooping titles last week from high-quality fields, the unpredictability of women’s tennis right now is unearthing some exciting talent.

RELATED: Title breakthroughs for young stars

It is a busy week on the ATP/WTA calendar with tournaments at Queen’s, Halle, Birmingham and Mallorca. Which event are you paying the most attention to and why?

VC: There’s good reason to watch all of them: Roger Federer’s form in Halle, Victoria Azarenka’s return in Mallorca and Petra Kvitova’s comeback in Birmingham all spring to mind. But my focus has been mostly on Queen’s – first to gauge the form of world No.1 and five-time champion Andy Murray; now to see if Thanasi Kokkinakis and Jordan Thompson can continue their exciting runs.

MT: This is tough! With six of the top 12 in Queen’s that would automatically attract my attention, until a stunning Tuesday on which the top three seeds of Murray, Wawrinka and Raonic all crashed out. But even that makes the tournament compelling – for what feels like the first time in ages, we have an open men’s event where you can’t confidently pick a winner. I’m really interested to see if Dimitrov can rediscover his form, and how Next Gen players like Kokkinakis, Shapovalov, Kozlov and Medvedev – all through to the last 16 – will fare.

LR: It’s a huge week in tennis, with lots of big names in action – but how good is it to see Victoria Azarenka back! For that reason I’m most interested in Mallorca, and especially to see just how the former world No.1 fares. She has struggled in her first round match, which resumes tomorrow late in the third set after darkness forced it to be postponed, but that has got to be expected after more than a year off. Regardless of the result, it is still exciting for tennis to have Azarenka back on tour.

RELATED: Why we love Thanasi Kokkinakis

Do you agree or disagree with our panel? Have your say on Facebook and Twitter using #SmashTalk.