In an unexpected turn of events, the final of the 2019 WTA Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships will feature the World No. 4 Petra Kvitova against the resurgent 21-year-old Belinda Bencic. The final will be played on Saturday, February 23, at 7:00 pm local time (3 pm BST).
Looking to watch (and bet) on the Kvitova v Bencic live streaming online? Go to Unibet > Tennis > Live Streaming here* .
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Petra Kvitova v Belinda Bencic Head to Head
The two ladies have met thrice so far on the WTA Tour and Kvitova has won all of those three matches. They most recently met in the Australian Open earlier this year, where the Czech defeated Bencic in the third round in straight sets.
Bencic Continues Her Remarkable Run
Over the course of the last week in Dubai, Bencic defeated some of the biggest names on the circuit. What is particularly impressive is that just a few weeks back in St. Petersburg, she barely made it past the qualifiers.
She won her opening matches against Lucie Hradecka and Stefanie Voegele in straight sets following which, she met a string of top-seeded players.
Her first victim in this line was the eighth seed Aryna Sabalenka. Then, she met the Romanian No. 1 Simona Halep and defeated her 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. In the semifinal yesterday, she went up against the two-time defending champion Elina Svitolina.
Against overwhelming odds, Bencic dethroned Svitolina and ensured a new champion in the competition this year. This is also the first time that the Swiss has reached the final on the tour since the Luxembourg Open last year, where she was the runner-up. In fact, since 2016, this is only her third final on the WTA circuit.
Bencic hasn’t won a title since the 2015 Rogers Cup but by the looks of it, that draught may be over quite soon. Earlier this year, she reached the semifinal in Hobart where she was knocked out by Anna Karolina Schmiedlova.
Kvitova’s Third Final on the Tour This Year
Kvitova, the two-time Wimbledon champion, has now made it to her third final of the season. The second seed won the WTA Sydney in January and followed it with a runner-up feat in the Australian Open.
The Czech has been one of the most consistent players on the circuit over the course of the last season or so. In 2018, she won five singles titles and four of them were in the Premier-level series and above.
At the same time, Kvitova has also succumbed to many underdogs in the course of her journey. She is not entirely invincible, as shown by Donna Vekic in St. Petersburg and Anett Kontaveit in Brisbane this year. Nonetheless, there aren’t many players on the WTA Tour who have had such an incredible run of things in recent times.
Kvitova v Bencic Predictions & Tips
Between the two, Kvitova will start as the favorite to win. However, given Bencic’s recent form, there is a very good possibility that she may defeat the Czech in the final. The quality of tennis that the Swiss is playing is something that we saw at the start of her career when she was a part of the top 10. Even then, she went head to head with big guns and came out as the victor.
You can watch & bet on Petra Kvitova v Belinda Bencic on Saturday, February 23 here . The match is scheduled to take place at around 7 pm local time.
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