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Match details
Fixture: (7) Petra Kvitova vs (12) Belinda Bencic
Tournament: Canadian Open 2023
Round: Third round (Round of 16)
Date: August 10, Thursday
Venue: Montreal, Canada
Category: WTA 1000
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $2,788,468
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - Sportsnet, TVA Sports | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Sony Liv
Petra Kvitova vs Belinda Bencic preview
Former champion Petra Kvitova will take on Belinda Bencic in an enticing third-round encounter at the 2023 Canadian Open.
Kvitova, who is the seventh seed at this year's tournament, opened her campaign with a topsy-turvy win over 2021 winner Camila Giorgi. The Czech was cruising at 6-2, 5-4 (30*-0) only for her serve to go off kilter. Her opponent managed to tighten things up to push for a decider, but Kvitova once again took charge of the proceedings to take the decider 6-0.
With a 9-1 win-loss in her last 10 matches, Kvitova is looking focused on staging another big run here at Montreal.
Bencic also continues to build on her solid showings at Wimbledon and Washington — where she posted wins over Anastasia Potapova, Danielle Collins, and Magda Linette on her way to the last-16 and quarterfinals, respectively.
The Swiss, much like her opponent, missed most of the claycourt season due to an injury. Barring her 6-2, 6-1 drubbing at the hands of Coco Gauff, she has looked good in her return to the quicker courts.
Petra Kvitova vs Belinda Bencic head-to-head
Kvitova leads Bencic in their head-to-head stands with a 4-2 margin. The two, however, have not faced each other on the Tour since 2019.
Petra Kvitova vs Belinda Bencic odds
(Odds to be updated.)
Petra Kvitova vs Belinda Bencic prediction
Petra Kvitova enjoys playing in Montreal, a venue where she clinched her first WTA 1000 title. And while the results in recent years have not matched her early success, the quick hardcourt play gives her an advantage.
The Czech's success rate in her opening match depended a lot on her serve. While she was consistent behind the delivery throughout — winning well over 70 percent of the points behind the first delivery — a few untimely double faults cost her the second set.
For someone like Kvitova, who plays with very little margin, such mistakes can put her off the rhythm completely. Playing against an opponent who knows her game well, she will need to be sharper in recovering from such deficits.
Bencic possesses the weapons to push her opponents onto the backfoot. She especially likes opening up the court using her wide serve and short angles, but that is always easy against someone who hits the ball as big as Kvitova.
The Swiss has also been wasteful with her break points conversions this week, winning only nine out of a whopping 24 chances. If Kvitova can fix her serving demons, these opportunities could easily dry up further. In such a scenario, a thrifty approach will land Bencic nowhere.
Prediction: Kvitova to win in two tight sets.
