Belinda Bencic wins first WTA title of '23 in straight sets at Adelaide International

Belinda Bencic celebrates an easy win of the Adelaide International

Belinda Bencic made winning a championship look easy at the Adelaide International Saturday. The world number 13 clinched herself a spot in the top ten, defeating Daria Kasatkina 6-0, 6-2 on center court at the Memorial Drive Tennis Club. The fifth seed had too many unforced errors, which allowed Bencic to have a smooth run to victory.

Both players received walkovers in lieu of the final, which was a rare occurrence in the sport. Spain’s Paula Badosa suffered a thigh injury not only took her out of the Adelaide 2 tournament, but also the Australian Open. Veronika Kudermetova pulled out with a left hip injury suffered in her quarterfinal that led her to withdraw against Belinda Bencic.

With the free rides into the final, it set up the two for a sixth meeting and the first in a final. Kasatkina carried a 6-5 record, having won five of her last seven finals played. Bencic lost nine of 15 career finals but shows 4-5 on the hard courts that included winning the gold medal in Tokyo.  

The Swiss had a golden start to the match, breaking Kasatkina to love on redirects. The wind picked up on the court, making it difficult for the fifth seed to find comfort in her game. Bencic took the win in stride, making the adjustments to stand strong against Kasatkina. It led to a 3-0 run for the Swiss, who quickly consolidated the double break, painting a winner to close out the fourth.

Kasatkina’s game was not going to plan, suffering a third break to Bencic, unable to get her return game into gear. On the verge of being bageled in the sixth, she tried to fight Bencic, but the eighth seed gained a set point, painting the line away from her opponent, taking the first in 25 minutes. Bencic’s offense was completely on point, scoring 93 percent from the first serve, while her opponent won only six shots from her game. With that and a bad return, a major shift had to occur.

Bencic opened the second set with a fourth break of Kasatkina, followed by a hold to back it up. Carrying an eight-game streak, the eighth seed watched Kasatkina pull things together and lock up a hold of serve, sending cheers from the fans. Despite a snap of her winning streak, Bencic regained her momentum in a competitive fourth game that went to deuce, taking the victory on serve. Bencic made it 4-1 with her second double break of Kasatkina, sitting two games from the championship.

The Swiss continued her impressive service, hitting the returns that rounded out her success against the struggling fifth seed. In her last attempt to extend the match, Kasatkina erred twice but fired a winner and an ace to level the score. Kasatkina was first to reach game point, but Bencic rallied to force deuce and bring up match point on a good read of Kasatkina’s drop shot attempt. She blew what was to be an easy match-point win, opening the door for the fifth seed to fight and capture another hold of serve.

It was all in the hands of the Swiss star to get it done in the ninth on her second match point. A backhand down the line beat Kasatkina to hand her the title in one hour and seven minutes.