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Match details
Fixture: (2) Anett Kontaveit vs (5) Belinda Bencic.
Date: 11 February 2022.
Tournament: St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
Round: Quarterfinals
Venue: St. Petersburg, Russia.
Category: WTA 500.
Surface: Indoor Hardcourt.
Prize money: $703,580.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video.
Anett Kontaveit vs Belinda Bencic preview
World No. 9 Anett Kontaveit will take on 24th-ranked Belinda Bencic in the quarterfinals at St. Petersburg on Friday.
The Estonian has simply picked up from where she left off last season. Having won the Ostrava Open, Kremlin Cup and Transylvania Open, Kontaveit has continued her rampage on indoor hardcourts even this year.
With a couple of wins this week in St. Petersburg, the 26-year-old has now extended her indoor match-winning streak to 17.
She didn't start off smoothly, though, dropping a set to World No. 35 Jil Teichmann. But the Estonian was able to summon the champion in her to complete a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 win.
Kontaveit had an easier time in the second round, where she edged Romanian veteran Sorana Cirstea 6-4, 7-5.
With a rest day before the quarterfinals, the World No. 9 will be keen to come out firing against Bencic and continue her mastery on indoor hardcourts.
Having had a good second half of 2021, which saw her win the Olympic gold, Belinda Bencic tested positive for COVID-19 in December. The Swiss is still struggling to rediscover her peak form following her recovery.
Although she made the quarters in Sydney, the Australian Open turned out to be highly disappointing for the 24-year-old as she crashed out in the second round.
Bencic will eagerly be looking to get back into rhythm this week in St. Petersburg.
She faced a steep challenge in the first round from Charleston champion Veronika Kudermetova. On a day where her serve let her down, Bencic had to dig deep into her reserves to eke out a 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(5) win.
She then staved off a late surge from Kaja Juvan to secure her quarterfinal spot with a 6-1, 7-6(2) win.
Anett Kontaveit vs Belinda Bencic head-to-head
Anett Kontaveit leads Belinda Bencic 2-0 in the head-to-head, having won both their meetings in straight sets so far. While the Estonian blew away Bencic 6-0, 6-1 in their first showdown at the 2020 Australian Open, she secured a 6-4, 6-3 win in their most recent clash in Ostrava last year.
Anett Kontaveit vs Belinda Bencic prediction
This will be a battle between two aggressive players, both of whom hit flat groundstrokes off both wings. Kontaveit enjoyed success against Bencic both times they met previously, making her the favorite to come through this contest.
For Bencic to make this match competitive, she needs to have a high percentage of first serves. However, her serving numbers so far in this tournament haven't been very encouraging.
Bencic landed 65% of her first serves along with seven aces and 10 double faults against Teichmann in the opening round. Against Juvan, her first serve percentage was merely 64%.
The Swiss needs a drastic improvement on those numbers against a returner of the Estonian's caliber. Kontaveit won't hesitate to pounce on her second serve with her brilliant angular returns or down-the-line shots.
She is highly efficient at converting defense into offense. Kontaveit will look for every opportunity to move the Swiss from side to side to open up the court and move forward to finish the point. The World No. 9 has also got an effective slice backhand with which she can disrupt the rhythm of her opponent.
Bencic isn't the best at responding under pressure and often collapses into a heap of errors when the chips are down. With Kontaveit coming into this match in a rich vein of form, she looks all set to earn her third consecutive win over the Swiss.
Prediction: Anett Kontaveit to win in straight sets.
