Belinda Bencic advanced to her first tour-level final since returning from maternity leave with an impressive 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over world number five Elena Rybakina at the Abu Dhabi Open on Friday.
The Swiss former Olympic champion welcomed her first child, Bella, in April 2024, and returned from a 13-month break from the tour six months later.
Bencic’s triumph over Rybakina was her first victory against top-five ranked opposition since becoming a mother and earned her a final showdown with American Ashlyn Krueger on Saturday.
“I'm so happy this is happening, for sure. I worked really hard to come back,” said Bencic, who won the Abu Dhabi title in 2023.
“It was definitely not an easy road, and I'm so excited that the results are coming so fast. It still doesn't mean that the work is over, so I have a long way to go, but I'm really happy how it's working on the court. And yeah, I'm really enjoying myself on the court.”
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Switzerland's Belinda Bencic returns the ball to Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina during their women’s semi-final singles match at the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open. AFP -
Belinda Bencic of Switzerland in action. EPA -
Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan in action. EPA -
Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina returns the ball. AFP -
Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina returns the ball. AFP -
Switzerland's Belinda Bencic in action. AFP -
Switzerland's Belinda Bencic returns the ball to Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina. AFP -
Ashlyn Krueger of the United States celebrates victory over Linda Noskova. Getty Images -
Ashlyn Krueger of the United States in action. Getty Images -
Linda Noskova of Czech Republic in action. EPA
In a meeting of the tournament’s last two champions, 2024 winner Rybakina drew first blood, breaking in the sixth game to take a one-set lead in 41 minutes.
Bencic retaliated immediately, creating a 3-0 gap early in the second set and maintaining her advantage to force a decider.
The first three games of the final set went against serve but it was Bencic who took control of the contest, strolling ahead 5-2 with a double-break lead.
Rybakina saved two match points and broke Bencic as she was serving for the victory, but the Swiss didn’t falter when she was in the same position two games later and wrapped up the win on her fourth match point.
Ranked 1213 in the world just four months ago, Bencic is now guaranteed a return to the top 100 following the conclusion of the tournament.
Earlier on centre court, Krueger reached the biggest final of her career with a 7-6 (7/2), 6-4 victory over Linda Noskova and credited her mental toughness for her breakthrough week in Abu Dhabi.
The world number 51 had battled through a trio of tough three-setters in her opening three matches in the UAE capital but needed just one hour and 42 minutes to overcome Noskova in straight sets in their semi-final clash.
Krueger, 20, will make her top-50 debut when the new rankings are released on Monday and paid tribute to the work she has been doing with her coach Michael Joyce for her recent success on court.
“I think my mentality and my mental toughness has worked a lot for me this week,” said Krueger, who hit 22 winners against just 18 unforced errors against Noskova.
“There were a lot of matches where I was down or down a break and just fighting back and really believing in my game and the way I'm playing and what I've worked on recently. So I think that was very evident in all the matches.”
In the first ever meeting between the two players, Krueger recovered from a 2-4 deficit in the opening set and went up a double-break in the second to put herself in a strong position to close out the contest.
The Texan couldn't convert a match point in the eighth game of the second set, as Noskova fought back and broke for 3-5 but Krueger served out the win at the second time of asking to reach a maiden WTA 500-level final.
