Paris, May 29: Five-time Grand Slam winner Petra Kvitova had already won simply by walking on court for her match against Julia Boserup but victory and a place in the second round of the French Open was an added bonus.

Five months after suffering life-threatening injuries when she was stabbed by an intruder in her home, Kvitova looked sharp and eager in a 6-3, 6-2 triumph.

Her parents Jiri and Pavla and brothers Jiri and Libor were in the stands on Court Philippe Chatrier, with her team decked out in matching T-shirts saying 'Courage, Belief, Pojd ('Come on' in Czech)'.

They gave loud support during the match, with the only disappointment the usual sparse early crowd on Roland Garros' main court.

Kvitova played remarkably well considering the circumstances and showed the weight of the occasion only at the end, dropping her racket to the clay and turning to her support camp with hand over mouth in disbelief.

Being back on court was the main thing but the competitive juices soon kicked back in. When Boserup threatened to pull back from 3-0 to 3-2 in the opening set, Kvitova roared and pumped her fist when she saved a break point.

There was certainly nothing wrong with the Czech's signature forehand, which soon had Boserup clawing at the clay in vain.

Kvitova still does not have perfect feeling in her hand but has not been in pain and is hoping it will eventually recover 100 per cent.

"I'm happy with the game, of course," Kvitova said, “but I mean, it wasn't really about the game today."

"For us, it's amazing. It's miracle. Not even me or Petra thought she could be ready to come back so soon," said her coach, Jiri Novak. “The prognosis was, let's just say, not optimistic."

During her on-court interview, Kvitova addressed Novak, her family and others in her guest box, saying: “Thank you for everything you helped me through (in) this difficult time."

“The belief and the mind, the heart, it's really important," Kvitova said afterward.

“So that's … what we try to show everyone. I hope that it will be kind of inspiration for other people, as well."

OneIndia News