Brutal Kvitova begins title defence in style

LONDON (Reuters) - Petra Kvitova began her Wimbledon defence as she left off in last year's final with a brutal exhibition of power tennis, dismantling Dutchwoman Kiki Bertens 6-1 6-0 in a 35-minute rout on Tuesday. The Czech second seed has form for leaving the Centre Court crowd feeling slightly short-changed after battering Eugenie Bouchard in 55 minutes to lift the Rosewater Dish trophy 12 months ago. Bertens was overwhelmed by Kvitova's relentless barrage of winners and almost went the entire match without winning a point on the Czech's serve. Kvitova spared her blushes by serving a double fault when leading 5-0 in the second set but the twice champion swiftly wrapped up the match. After walking on court under sunny skies to gentle applause, the Czech broke twice to take the first set in 18 minutes and her 108th-ranked failed to win a single game in the second. Next up for Kvitova will be either Poland's Magda Linette or Kurumi Nara of Japan.