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Petra Kvitova is hoping her abdominal injury is a thing of the past after admitting the problem has restricted practice opportunities.

The Czech world No.9 exited Madrid last week after battling pain in defeat to Daria Gavrilova and admits it is still an issue going into the Italian Open.

“I didn’t really practice,” she said on Monday. “I have been with my doctor and checking the stomach muscle, and he said it’s almost okay. I didn’t really practice and I practiced yesterday for half an hour for the first time and today again. So that’s good.

“I don’t feel really pain. I’m just a little bit scared about it. But I think it’s in the good way up. So that’s important. I’m just trying to hit as many balls as I can but still with a good balance, not really too much.

“The courts are pretty good, I think. I didn’t really practice on the big ones, but the practice courts are good. I hope the main courts will be the same. I think that we are kind of used to have different conditions every week. And it’s no jet lag, which is good (smiling).

“My goal here is not to hurt myself. Not really to be injured again. That’s the main thing.

“I know I’m missing the practices, but I’m here to do my best again and we’ll see how everything will handle it. Of course Paris is coming, and it’s still week between, which is good. We’ll see how everything is going but no expectations really here.”

Kvitova has twice made the quarter-finals in Rome.