Belinda Bencic's Australian Open Statement: Boulter Overwhelmed

Before her meeting with one of the surging, most in-form players in the world, Katie Boulter reassured herself in all the right ways. All the pressure would be on her opponent’s shoulders and nobody expected her to win, she reasoned, meaning this was the perfect opportunity to swing freely without inhibitions. In theory, Boulter was correct, but matching the level of a confident top player is still an incredibly difficult task. As the sun set over Margaret Court Arena, and Boulter attempted to impose her weapons in her first round match against the 10th seed Belinda Bencic, the former British No 1 was outclassed by a sensational Bencic, who rolled into the second round with a 6-0, 7-5 win. This was a statement first-round performance from Bencic, who has started the season 6-0 for the first time in her career and has established herself as a genuine title contender in Melbourne. Bencic is a master at holding her position on the baseline and using her immaculate timing and hand-eye coordination to deflect her opponents’ pace. Unfortunately for Boulter, her linear, one-note flat ball striking completely fed into Bencic’s game. The 28-year-old smothered Boulter with her relentless depth, shot tolerance and effortless ability to change directions off both wings. Bencic was flawless throughout the first set, striking just three unforced errors throughout and completely dominating all rallies longer than three shots. Still, Boulter fought hard and began to find rhythm on her serve early in set two and her excellent serving allowed her to strike first and shorten points. She played a good set, going toe-to-toe with her opponent for much of it, even retrieving Bencic’s break to establish a 5-4 lead. However, Bencic is playing with such confidence; in the tight moments late in set two, shifted her level on the decisive points and closed out a solid victory without hesitation. This was one of the toughest draws Boulter could have received. Bencic enjoyed an incredible comeback from maternity leave last year, rising from No 421 last January to No 11 at the end of the year with a Wimbledon semi-final plus WTA 500 titles in Abu Dhabi and Tokyo. At the start of the season, Bencic appears to have taken her game to new heights. She almost single-handedly dragged Switzerland into the final of the United Cup by winning all five of her singles matches, including top 10 wins over Iga Swiatek and Jasmine Paolini, and four of her five mixed doubles matches. Those performances afforded her a long-awaited return to the top 10 and solidified her as a genuine title contender in Melbourne. For Boulter, this result showed the gap between herself and the top players. After one of the greatest seasons in her life in 2024, when she rose to an unlikely career high of 23, last year was a brutal fall from grace. She is now ranked No 113 and she only made it into the main draw due to a last minute withdrawal. However, the season has only just begun. In the coming months, with her new coach Michael Joyce, the challenge will be to rebuild confidence in her game and attempt to return to a ranking that will ensure she does not face a tournament favourite in the first round of a grand slam. Earlier on Tuesday, Sonay Kartal endured a frustrating day on court as she suffered a 7-6(3), 6-1 defeat by the 31st seed Anna Kalinskaya.