Petra Kvitova closing in on 2nd Wimbledon title.

Petra Kvitova is one match away from doing what she did back in 2011- wining the ladies’ singles Wimbledon title. Her victory over Lucie Safarova saw her dominate her countrywoman 6-1 in the second set as she marched through a draw she has never looked back on since overcoming Venus Williams in their three set third round tussle.

Standing in Kvitova’s way is the 13th seeded Genie Bouchard. The 20 year old overcame an injured Simona Halep in straight sets. The Canadian is certainly dominating the tennis media with regards to the women’s final but she is not expected to dominate the sixth seeded Kvitova whose power game is difficult for any of the women on its day.

Bouchard will not be overwhelmed though. As confident as they come, and when her timing and positioning is on, as big a belter of the ball on the return as they get. She also has, a huge plus in a game that has stagnated at the baseline for far too long, some variety to her game. And on grass, her somewhat unorthodox technique of crouching down as she hits her groundstrokes, will serve her well as she can get to the lowest of balls and hit them back flat.

Still, it is Kvitova who has the game made for grass. Her huge serve which brings back short returns she strides into the court to belt away is a weapon many expected to glean more than just two Wimbledon last eight appearances in SW19 since her run to the 2011 title. There is the ground game, too. When Kvitova hits the ball, it stays hit, and while it may be hit or miss, right now she is veering more towards the hit side, which is bad news for anyone else who fancies their chances of becoming a slam champion.

Not only does Kvitova know what to do and have the tools, she has the added factor of hunger, too. Bouchard has hunger, too, but it is a different sort. It is the fresh-eyed hunger of a player with slam dreams before them. Kvitova’s is somewhat darker. Hers is the hunger of those who have tasted glory and then starved. For Kvitova has been three seasons in the wilderness, not even making a slam final, and suffering painful defeats, such as the one last year in the last eight. Kvitova wants to feast again, is at the table, the food spread out before her. You can see it in her eyes. Best bet for Bouchard is not to look into them.