by Belinda Bencic won her second title of the year by making an emphatic come-back after saving three championship points. Liudmila Samsonova was just one point from the title but saw it slipping away. She will be disappointed that she also could not to extend her head-to-head having gone into the match with a 3-0 lead.
Samsonova Rues Missed Opportunities
Samsonova started the match extremely well breaking Belinda Bencic twice to take the first set comfortably with a 6-1 score. The Russian looked set to take the title in two sets, however Bencic kept her cool and delivered in the crucial points to force a tie-break in the second set.
Samsonova started brightly and got match point in the tie-break at 6-4, but Bencic returned the serve with a fiery forehand down the line. To her credit Samsonova got there to cross the ball to Bencic’s back-hand, but the Swiss delivered a bullet of a back-hand down the line which was driven low, and Samsonova’s return hit the net.
The Swiss then saved the next championship point a bit controversially as the ball looked to be deep behind the baseline but no call arrived. Samsonova perhaps got caught in between two thoughts and ultimately chose to return, but was off-balance and hit the net. The number two seed saved the third championship point by forcing the Russian into an error as she drove the ball out of court.
Bencic Secures the Win
The number two seed then took the momentum shift at 8-8 in the tie-break to get herself a set-point and needed no second invitation to grab it, as Samsonova hit her return into the net, handing the second set to Bencic and taking the match to the third set.
The two went head-to-head in the third set, with Bencic breaking Samsonova and ultimately taking the only championship point she had available as the Russian hit the net.
Liudmila Samsonova was unstoppable in the first set as she executed her game well to get herself in a winning position but just could not get over the line in the crucial moment in the second set. It is a strange one considering she had yet to lose a final in her career. However, she had been hesitant in matches as the competition progressed and Bencic seems to have had the composure to capitalize in those moments.
Sights Set on Doha
Belinda Bencic has now taken two titles in this year’s calendar and totals eight career titles. She will now set her sights on Doha. It is set to be an entertaining competition with seven of the top 10 world-ranked players competing. The qualification rounds have been completed and the top-seeds will begin their journey in the competition on Monday.
