Unseeded, 18-year-old Belinda Bencic scored the biggest win of her career with a 3-6 7-5 6-4 win over world number one Serena Williams, Saturday at the Aviva Centre.
Powerful First Set From Williams
To begin the match, Williams won the toss and elected to serve. The first three games went on serve before a powerful return game from the world number 1, got her a break of serve. Williams consolidated the break and it looked like she was in no mood to stick around. The next game gave us glimpses of what Bencic can do but the combination of defence and offence from the world number 1 was too much for her to handle.
Despite this, the 18-year-old offered some resistance and as a result, she got one of the breaks back thanks to a double fault from Williams and held serve. But up 5-3, Serena was not going to let this set slip from her grasp. With a hold to 15, she had secured the set 6-3. It was clear from the beginning of the match that Williams wanted to dictate as many points as possible, as shown in the first set statistics. She hit 18 winners and 14 unforced errors to Bencic’s 4 and 6. She was one set away from winning her 15th consecutive match in Toronto.
Bencic Fights Back
The second set began with a crucial hold from Bencic. Down 0-30, she fought back to hold, much to the delight of most of the crowd. The next six games went with serve until Serena was serving, trailing 3-4. The young Swiss sensed her opportunities were coming and she needed to grab one of them before it was too late. Thanks to a poor drop shot from Williams and an easy forehand winner, Bencic broke for 5-3. As you would expect, the world number one was not happy with herself and broke her racquet, getting a code violation for racquet abuse.
Bencic had a set point while serving for the set but she double faulted and in the blink of an eye, Williams had broken back. Serena held to 15 and the score was now leveled at 5-all in the second set. The nerves and frustration were evident in the young Swiss’ game as she went down 0-40. Despite this, she managed to claw back thanks to some clever play and a few errors from Williams. Could that be the turning point in this match? That would prove to be the turning point in the second set.
A poor service game from Serena at just the wrong time put her down 15-40 and gave her younger Swiss counterpart two set points. Surprisingly, the world number 1 double faulted and that was the set! Belinda Bencic had clawed her way back into this match and was one set away from her maiden WTA Premier 5 level final.
Bencic With the Early Lead, Williams Clawing Back
To begin the third set, Bencic saved a break point and held. Just like wine, Belinda got better with time in this match. In the blink of an eye, she had broken the 21-time Grand Slam champion’s serve once again. Even with Williams putting up a fight to get that break back, Bencic refused to let up, holding for 3-0 in the final set. With this lead, it looked like the young Swiss Miss was in no mood to stick around. She broke again and at she found herself up 4-0. Could this be her night?
Belinda had hit some solid second serves all night but this time, they landed too short. Williams got one of the breaks back but still trailed 1-4. In the next game, Bencic showed maturity beyond her years, continuing to fight to get the double break once again. On break point for the youngster, Serena dumped yet another backhand into the net. Game, Bencic. Bencic leads five games to one. She was just one game away now... But could she close it out?
Showing why she is such a true champion and arguably the greatest of all time, Serena Williams refused to give up. She continued to go for the lines and as a result, she forced errors from the Swiss to break back. Could she be mounting a come back?
After almost 45 minutes since last holding serve, Williams did just that. Bencic now led 5-3. Could she close it out this time? On multiple occasions in the last few games, Belinda has been two points away from winning the match but she just couldn't get to match point and close out the match. History repeated itself in the ninth game of the final set. Serena was just too powerful in the important points and on break point, it was Bencic who double faulted. Williams had come from 1-5 down and recovered both service breaks. All she needed to do was hold. Bencic was furious with herself.
In the next game, Bencic played some clever shots to force errors from the world number 1. All of a sudden, she found herself with a match point. On her first match point, a stunning backhand down the line from the 18-year-old followed by a forehand winner down the line won her the match! The teenager from Flawil, Switzerland had completed the upset, handing Serena Williams her second loss of the 2015 season.
What This Result Means
For Serena Williams, this loss might sting for a little while but knowing what a true champion she is, she'll regroup from this loss and use it to refuel her desire to win every match she plays. With the potential calendar slam for the world number 1 on the cards, this loss might be a blessing in disguise.
For Belinda Bencic, apart from this being the biggest win and final of her career, she will move to a career high of number 15 in the world. If she can beat Halep in the final, she will be number 12 in the world. Just this past Monday, she had broken into the top 20 for the first time.