After a two months layoff due to a back injury, Belinda Bencic is back on court and into the semifinals of the Ricoh Open. However, her opponent in this round is Kristina Mladenovic that after a rough start of the year reached the third round of the French Open where she lost against Serena Williams in a tight match and along with Caroline Garcia conquered the doubles title in Roland Garros.
Road to the semifinals
Belinda Bencic made her Top 10 debut this year after reaching the final in St. Petersburg, but ever since the Swiss struggled with her back injury. Bencic lost She was forced to pull out from the French Open, but now she’s back looking to reach the final at the Ricoh Open.
The Swiss started the tournament with a three-set win against Alison Van Uytvanck. Then reached the quarterfinals where she plays against Varvara Lepchenko in another difficult match, but the top seed managed to stay strong and won 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. In the quarterfinals, Bencic had to face fellow Swiss, Viktorija Golubic who had previously beaten Risa Ozaki. Golubic turned out to be her fastest opponent as she beat her in straight sets, however, this doesn’t mean she was the easiest as Golubic forced Bencic to win the match in two tiebreaks.
"I don't think it was a really good match from my side, but all I could do myself was just to fight and keep going," Bencic said. "I'm just hoping to improve."
The Frenchwoman didn’t have her best year also. She started in one of the best matches at the Australian Open against Daria Gavrilova in the third round, she lost the match after nearly three hours. She also was part of the French team at the Fed Cup where she helped France to reach the semifinals and later to the final after defeating The Netherlands. For Mladenovic, clay season was not the best as she lost in the first round at Stuttgart, Madrid and Rome. Still, the Frenchwoman reached her first quarterfinal at Strasbourg which proves she plays her best in her home country. Then she would reach the third round at the French Open where she lost to Serena Williams in two tight sets but went on to win the doubles title with Caroline Garcia.
Mladenovic started her campaign at the Ricoh Open against Yaroslava Shvedova where she showed a great performance defeating her in straight sets. Then the third seed defeated Natalia Vikhlyantseva in her longest match so far, winning in three sets, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4. In the quarterfinals she faced Elina Mertens who knocked off Eugenie Bouchard in the first round, however, the Belgian was not a task for Mladenovic who reached the semifinals in straight sets.
"I have to be honest, I'm a bit surprised to be in the quarterfinals here," Mladenovic admitted. "But I love the tournament, grass is one of my favorite surfaces. I was thinking about maybe pulling out, because obviously there is fatigue. I'm a bit tired, but I wanted to commit because I love this tournament and that's why I keep coming back a couple of years in a row."
Head-to-Head
This will be their second meeting, coincidently their only meeting was in this tournament last year where Bencic prevailed in the quarterfinals. However, it was a very tough battle and Mladenovic even had match points. Belinda Bencic eventually won 7-6, 6-7, 7-5.
Match Analysis
Belinda Bencic knows what it's like to be in the final of this tournament as she reached it last year where she lost against Camila Giorgi. She also knows what it’s like to defeat Mladenovic in this tournament. However, all things considered, the top seed has been away from the game for nearly two months and this is her first tournament in a while. All her matches had been to three sets or had ended in tiebreaks, as for Mladenovic got two straight set wins.
The Frenchwoman admitted she considered to pulled out of the tournament because of fatigue after she had two busy weeks in France where she participated in the three events (singles, mixed doubles, doubles) but her love for the tournament made her come back. Another point for Mladenovic is that her confidence is high at the moment, after months of losing in the first rounds, the Frenchwoman came to the Netherlands as a Grand Slam doubles champion and after having a tough encounter with Serena Williams.
Both players have an aggressive game, but unlike Mladenovic, Bencic knows she is not a powerful hitter but she is a smart player and always tries to make her opponent fight for every point. A key factor for Mladenovic will be her serve who always saves her in difficult positions, she also will need to attack, but most importantly she will need to work on her defensive skills since Bencic will not hesitate to attack the French. Mladenovic is a good doubles player as she has shown this year, she needs to apply the skills she has acquired in doubles here to increase her chances of winning.
The lack of matches is a huge factor against Bencic as coming back from an injury is never easy and she will compete against a confident player, but this could also be a benefit for the Swiss. Mladenovic’s fatigue could strike at any moment, plus, she still dealing with the change of surfaces.
Prediction: Belinda Bencic in three sets