Bencic wins 6-0, 7-5 after Briton rallies in second set
Sonay Kartal dispatched 7-6(3), 6-1 by Kalinskaya
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.
