Belinda Bencic rallies to win in straight sets at the Porsche Tennis GP

Belinda Bencic clenches her fist during her first-round match against Nastasja Schunk at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. 

Belinda Bencic had to fight hard for advancement at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix Monday evening. The eighth seed had trouble early against German teenager Nastasja Schunk but came through in straight sets 6-4, 6-2 on center court at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart. 

This was a first-time meeting between the two and a key point for the German to take on a ranked player. Bencic returned in her third appearance at the Grand Prix and the first since 2019. Since the clay season began, the Swiss star didn’t get the best results from her time in Charleston, losing in the first round. 

The 24-year-old carried a two-match losing streak, but her return home put her in a better outlook for being back in Europe. Schunk did well this weekend through qualifications becoming the eighth player from her home country to make the tournament. With the court advantage, she looked to test Bencic and see if an upset was in the cards. 

Schunk was first to act in the match and did well on serve, showing Bencic her fierce forehand. The eighth seed struggled to bring the same intensity but managed to hold serve against her. The German kept up her strengths on return of service, giving herself an edge over Bencic, who was still warming up. She leveled the score after four games and went after Schunk to score a break in the fifth. 

The teen broke back to make it three all with Bencic, but on serve in the seventh, she double-faulted to tighten up the score. The Swiss player had a double break chance, but the 18-year-old rallied to fight for her end. Bencic slowed the rallies that allowed her to dictate play and come through two breaks of deuce with the lead. A big hold in the eighth gave Bencic the leverage to break Schunk, but the German teen caught a break with forehand errors from the Swiss to stay alive in the set. 

Bencic refused to give her a shot at going deeper into the first and closed it out in 50 minutes. Despite having 12 unforced errors, the nine winners and four aces that she shot at Schunk helped her get out of the trouble that could have gone worse if not checked. 

The German teen opened the second and held right off the point, but consistency wouldn’t wrap into her against the eighth seed. Bencic took her recent success and tallied a hold in the second. She backed it up with a break in the third and took the next three straight, scoring the double break along the way. Schunk did everything to keep going against Bencic who struggled to get it done. 

Four match points were answered by the 18-year-old, who made things difficult as the points increased. After 17 points played and five match points saved, Schunk played a net-front crosscourt return strategy that brought an end to the fight and earn her a second win in the set. 

With the balls in her hand on serve, the eighth seed comfortably had her game under control, reaching two more match points. The sixth attempt back had awry for Schunk who made it an 86 minute battle for the Swiss player. "I had trouble with her game," Bencic said about Schunk after the match. "She reads the game well and she plays a good pace and that was uncomfortable for me." 

She'll prepare for more discomfort as she meets the winner between Karolina Muchova or Ekaterina Alexandrova. "I'll see how they play and ill prepare for them."