Qiang Wang flys straight to second round in three set win over Belinda Bencic

Qiang Wang serves up a shot for Belinda Bencic during their first-round match at the Championships Wimbledon. 

Belinda Bencic played hard over the span of two day, only to see her tournament cut short at the Championships Wimbledon Tuesday. A lingering injury and lots of spunk from Qiang Wang allowed the Chinese star to advance after a 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 result on Court 12 at the All England Tennis Club.

The two full-time stars of the WTA tour meet in a grand slam matchup to begin their series with one another. During the grass-court season, both players put in their time, but it was Bencic going for broke in Berlin. After losing in Hertogenbosch, the Swiss star moved into Berlin and gave it a run to the final. Despite retiring due to an ankle injury to eventual champ Ons Jabeur, the 25-year-old more than prepared herself for action at SW19.

Wang went a different path, playing a bit in the ITF before giving Nottingham and Birmingham a ruse. Though they didn’t pan out, her exhibition run at Liverpool produced three match wins. With the Chinese star carrying a streak, she would hope that it could bring up a problem for the 14th seed.  

Bencic cruised to a 40-0 opening, but problems brought Wang to deuce. The unseeded player managed to bring up an AD point, only to see Bencic reel her in and lock down the service. The 30-year-old produced a perfect serve to Bencic in the second and built up a breakpoint chance in the third. Bencic got into a net battle with Wang to settle the score to deuce. Her efforts to hold serve soured on the second break with an error that clinched the lead for the Chinese star.

The 14th seed broke back immediately in the fourth, not ready to give Wang any opportunities. Instead, she took one herself with a hold of serve in the fifth and beat Wang for the double break. Despite losing ground, the Chinese star battled back and cut Bencic’s lead, notching the fourth break of serve in the set. The score was level at four-all due to Wang’s effort to consolidate on serve.

She tallied her third win in a row against Bencic, who was outplayed on serve and faced going down a set. Wang was very much in gear, but a battle from Bencic forced her to go to deuce. She put down some good winners, but a late surge in the fourth break brought up a winner that sealed the deal for her. After a 45-minute set, Wang scored 75 percent from the first serve and had 17 winners to go with it. Bencic suffered many errors, with most at the hands of Wang and some of her own doing.

As the sunlight slowly faded from the court, Wang continued her dominance. She opened the second with a break of the Swiss star and backed it up on the serve. The Chinese star took a commanding presence on the court with a 3-0 lead over the 14th seed. With the double break in hand, the 30-year-old consolidated for a 4-0 score for her eighth game in a row over the Swiss. Bencic was not in position to overturn Wang but fought against the light to stay in contention.

In the fifth, the 14th seed was up 40-15 and snapped the long winning streak of Wang on a long error. Bencic fought back in the next game, earning three break points on the Chinese player. Wang managed to save one and forced errors from the 14th seed to reach deuce. After a couple of breaks, it was Wang who worked through Bencic to reach 5-1. Sitting on the edge of an early exit, Bencic served to stay alive in the seventh and held serve. Wang earned the chance to end it herself, but errors from her side of the court gave Bencic life. With two breakpoints, the 14th seed watched a pop fly go long, earning a third straight win.

The Swiss star hung on for another game as she had Wang’s nerves rattled after the ninth, gaining momentum. The 25-year-old completed the comeback with a dominant run of winners that broke down Wang, who was panicking on the court. Bencic won 16 of the last 20 points and, on game point in the 11th, the 14th seed locked down her fifth win in a row. Making sure that she stayed in control of the score, Bencic managed to secure the 12th game that sealed her a set to the good before play suspended.    

When play resumed the next day, Wang took the lead on a break of Bencic. She backed it up on serve for the 2-0 lead and soon had a 3-1 hold after four games. She sped through the next two games made it 5-1 for the Chinese star, who opened the match the same way. Bencic served to stay alive in the competition and rallied to hold off the end of her time on the court. Wang had two chances to get it done against Bencic and brought up an attempt, but watched it go long. She didn’t let her next attempt slip away, scoring her place in the second round on a long return from Bencic ending

Jelena Ostapenko works Oceane Dodin out of Wimbledon in straight sets

Jelena Ostapenko smashes a forehand across court to Oceane Dodin in their first-round match at the Championships Wimbledon

Jelena Ostapenko got into a quick battle but held the way to win at the Championships Wimbledon Tuesday. Despite a late start to her opening round match with Oceane Dodin, the Latvian held off the competition to win 6-4, 6-4 on Court 17 at the All England Tennis Club.

Despite losing out on back-to-back titles in Eastbourne, the Latvian was more than ready to meet her French opponent for the third time. Their last match in Doha went to the former French Open champion, who wanted to take all her progress this grass-court season and return to the semis from four years ago. Dodin only played one match on grass, leaving her vulnerable against the 12th seed. Despite the lack of work on the surface, Dodin had the capabilities to put into play.

Ostapenko opened the scoring with a serve to love, followed by a break gifted by the French star herself. Dodin broke back with terrific winning returns on every shot, but tying in a hold of serve was denied by the Latvian, who took a 3-1 stance. She adjusted to her serve against the breeze on the court to consolidate and take a 4-1 lead on Dodin. The French star cracked onto the score with a hold of serve, but Ostapenko continued to climb closer to taking the set, holding her end in the seventh.

Dodin inched closer to Ostapenko in back-to-back victories that saw the 12th seed struggle with returns. A game separated the two going into the ninth and Dodin on the service. She tried to get the victory that would level the score but reached deuce on errors. She handed the Latvian four set points until a long return ended the set for the 12th seed in 34 minutes. Unforced errors rattled both players in the end with 19, but the 11 winners Ostapenko produced were enough to help her edge ahead.

The 12 seed didn’t have the room to make errors in the second set, as Dodin followed her on holding serves through four games. In the fifth, the French star broke Ostapenko before she suffered one right back. The Latvian put together a serve to love in the seventh, as an error came across the court and long of the baseline. Dodin was still on her tail as the two reached the business end of the set.

In the ninth, Ostapenko locked the hold of serve to put Dodin on the hot seat to answer. The Latvian fired back forehand winners to reach match point, leading her to victory on her second attempt. A forehand winner put a cap on a quick day for the 12th seed, who secured a spot in the second round in 1 hour and 10 minutes.