Belinda Bencic says she will take plenty of positives from Tuesday’s WTA Finals win over Petra Kvitova. The Swiss was facing elimination from the end-of-season event in Shenzhen following an opening defeat to Ashleigh Barty, but she overcame some awkward moments against the two-time former Wimbledon champion. She kept her hopes of progressing through the Red Group alive with a 6-3 1-6 6-4 success to set up a showdown with Kiki Bertens. Kvitova’s power from the back of the court always make her a tricky customer and Bencic says she will take heart from the way in which she managed both her opponent and the occasion to produce a gutsy performance. “I think definitely she was dictating the game today,” she told the WTA Tour’s website. “I don’t think we played our best tennis, for sure not. Maybe in the end, the couple last games I found my game, my rhythm, my groove somehow. I’m super proud of that. “Somehow I didn’t even feel nervous. I had no pressure of not getting eliminated. I saw the script, like, what happens if this player wins, blah, blah, blah. “I didn’t know before the matches. I just played. I knew if I don’t win this match I’m eliminated, but I didn’t think about it.” In Tuesday’s other Red Group encounter, Bertens, a replacement for Naomi Osaka following the two-time Grand Slam winner’s injury withdrawal, shocked Barty with a 3-6 6-3 6-4 success.
COMMENTS