By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, February 23, 2019
Belinda Bencic scored her fourth Top-10 win of the week, beating Petra Kvitova, 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 to claim her third career title in Dubai.
Photo credit: Hopman Cup Facebook
Petra Kvitova saw the smoke signs before she faced the fire.
Asked to assess Belinda Bencic's form after the Swiss dispatched three Top 10 opponents—saving six match points to subdue Aryna Sabalenka, surprising third-seeded Simona Halep and dethroning two-time defending champion Elina Svitolina yesterday—Kvitova candidly replied: "She's on fire."
More: Bencic Dethrones Defending-Champion Svitolina
Stoking the competitive fire, Bencic burned through the final set of a 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 conquest of Kvitova capturing her third career title at the Dubai Duty Free Championships.
The 45th-ranked Swiss completed a masterful week that saw her dispatch four Top 10 opponents with bold three-set victories joining Venus Williams (2014) and Sara Errani (2016) as the third unseeded woman to rule Dubai.
"This is amazing," Bencic told Annabel Croft afterward. "I cannot believe it. It's been an amazing tournament for me. Congrats to Petra, she played an amazing tournament. It was an honor to be on court with her today.
"She's playing so fast I just tried to put as many balls back as possible to put as many balls back as I can...I'm so happy."
It is Bencic's second Premier 5-level title.
Back in 2015, an 18-year-old Bencic beat standouts Caroline Wozniacki, Ana Ivanovic, Serena Williams and Halep in the final to capture Toronto and signal her status as a top young talent.
Though back, wrist and foot injuries derailed her progress, the former world No. 7 played like a Top 10 veteran this week, raising her three-set record to 7-1 on the season.
It is Bencic's 17th career Top 10 victory—most of any woman age 21 or younger—and will propel her back to No. 23 when the new WTA rankings are released on Monday.
That rankings rise could well prompt a dramatic fall: Bencic said her father and coach, Ivan, promised he would go sky-diving with his daughter if she won the title and though dad seemed to wave off the joyful jump, Bencic spoke like a woman eager to take the winning plunge.
Contesting her third final of the season, Kvitova had won all six sets she'd played previously vs. Bencic and had won seven of her last eight finals. But the powerful Czech could not overcome the Swiss' sniper return game and seemed to run out of gas in the final stages. The two-time Wimbledon winner dropped to 17-4 on the season.
Swinging freely at the start, Bencic burned through eight of the first nine points opening the final with a break. Bencic repeated the early-break pattern she set with upsets of Halep and Svitolina.
The Australian Open finalist fended off a break point, but was pressured by Bencic's predatory return posture and spit up a second double fault to face a second break point. Kvitova curled an exquisite crosscourt forehand to erase it prompting scattered chants of "Petra! Petra!"
Bencic quieted the uprising stepping inside the baseline to cut off the angle of a second serve and zooming a clean backhand return winner for a 4-1 double-break lead 24 minutes into the match.
After a visit from coach Jiri Vanek, who presumably told his charge to attack the Swiss' less stable forehand wing, Kvitova changed her patterns breaking at love and running through eight of nine points to close to 3-4.
Timing the ball beautifully, Bencic continued to prowl the baseline robbing Kvitová's reaction time. When the Czech left-hander clanked her second double fault of the game to face set point in the ninth game, Bencic wasted no time converting.
Stepping into the court, Bencic banged a backhand swing volley closing a commanding 39-minute set—the first set the Swiss won against Kvitova. Bencic made only four unforced errors—seven fewer than her opponent—and converted three of five break points in the set.
Kvitova started the second set with a break as she tried to assert aggression in digging out of a 15-30 hole to back up the break.
While Bencic short-armed a couple of serves, Kvitova was crunching the ball with greater conviction. A drive that trampolined off the net and settled on the Swiss' side of the court gave Kvitova her second straight break for 3-0.
Snapping off a wide ace, Kvitova extended to 5-1. Measuring a backhand return, Kvitova crushed a drive down the line breaking to snatch the second set and forced a decider.
Serving 75 percent in the second set, Kvitova hit 11 winners to one for Bencic in streaking through the second set. She stamped a quick hold to start the third.
Bencic stopped a three-game slide zipping an ace to level the decider.
A horrid game that saw Kvitova completely bungle a forehand sitter and dump two double faults gifted the break and a 2-1 lead to Bencic.
The world No. 45 reasserted her authority confirming the break with her third consecutive game for 3-1.
Bending a dipping backhand pass at Kvitová's feet gave Bencic a pair of break points. The Bencic backhand was a rock-solid shot throughout. She stood toe-to-toe with one of the sport's biggest hitters pitting her crosscourt two-hander against Kvitová's lefty forehand finally drawing the error to break for 5-2.
On her first championship point, Bencic flattened a backhand into net. On her second championship point, Bencic closed to capture Dubai 19 years after mentor Martina Hingis claimed the inaugural Dubai Duty Free Championships.