Legend:
Had to accept a bitter disappointment
Belinda Bencic.
AP Photo/Adam Hunger
- Belinda Bencic (WTA 13) has to bow out in the 3rd round of the US Open as the last remaining Swiss woman.
- The 25-year-old is defeated by the Czech Karolina Pliskova (WTA 22) 7: 5, 4: 6, 3: 6.
- In the meantime, Bencic leads with set and break, but then loses the important points.
The dream of the first Grand Slam title is over for Belinda Bencic, at least in 2022. In the 3rd round of the US Open, the Olympic champion had to congratulate Karolina Pliskova, who was particularly strong in the final phase, on her victory after almost two and a half hours.
Too many missed opportunities
Bencic met the Czech at eye level for long stretches. In the decisive moments, however, Pliskova was a touch better. This is also the case with the score of 3: 4 from the point of view of the Swiss in the decisive set.
After Bencic had been able to make up for a break deficit twice before, she pulled away to 40:0 in her service game. With the equalizer in mind, the 25-year-old made mistakes again, which in turn fueled Bencic’s uncertainty. Pliskova capitalized on this with 5 points in a row, made the break to 5: 3 and a little later used her 1st match point to reach the round of 16.
Advantage frittered away
Although the opponent played big at times, Bencic is likely to continue to struggle with this defeat. The Swiss felt that she was the better player from the baseline and dictated the majority of the longer rallies. However, Bencic failed to pull the opponent’s tooth when the opportunity presented itself.
After winning the hard-fought first set, the world number 13 immediately pulled away to 2:0 in the second round, but was unable to make the most of the momentum. Instead, she entered a phase of weakness that culminated in the 10th game. When the score was 4:5, Bencic gave the Czech the break with 2 double faults and 2 unforced faults and thus equalized the set.