Belinda Bencic vs Donna Vekic- US Open - Quarterfinals - Preview and Prediction

The tennis pundits and fans were proved wrong when Belinda Bencic set up an exciting clash with Donna Vekic in the US Open quarterfinals tonight.

The Swiss has had a remarkable season so far defending the Hopman Cup, partnering Roger Federer as they defeated the German pair of Alexander Zverev and Angelique Kerber in the finals. 

She began the year reaching the semi-finals of the Hobart Open which was a warm-up event before the Australian Open. 

Bencic showed that she belongs to the big league when she triumphed in the Dubai Open. She won against four seeded players in a row with all her matches being decided in the third set. 

She performed well in Indian Wells reaching the semi-finals beating top players before losing to Kerber in straight sets.

The clay season was not great for her as she crashed out early in the Rome Open and the French Open. 

The only saving grace was a semifinal showing in the Madrid Open. Bencic recovered lost ground, making it to the finals of the Mallorca Open.

Despite not being in great form in the North American hard-court tournaments - Rogers Cup and Cincinnati Masters, Bencic has played brilliantly in the US Open till now with her victims including the reigning World Number 1 Naomi Osaka. 

On the other hand, Donna Vekic has gone from strength to strength this season. She started strongly reaching the semis of the Brisbane Open, Acapulco Open and the finals of the St. Petersburg Open. 

Her clay-court performances were good as she reached the pre-quarterfinals in the Madrid Open and the French Open.

Vekic made a smooth transition to grass, losing a thrilling final to Caroline Garcia in the Nottingham Open in three sets. 

She warmed up for the US Open reaching the semifinals of the San Jose Open but suffered quick exits in Rogers Cup and the Cincinnati Open.

Vekic had easy progress in the first three rounds of the US Open even though Julia Georges gave her a big scare in the fourth round and Vekic showed her mental strength as she saved a match point to prevail in three sets.

Bencic and Vekic have played each other thrice before. Bencic won twice in 2014 but Vekic won their recent encounter 6-4 6-1 in the third round of the French Open 2019.

Both of them will look to stake a claim in their first Grand Slam semifinal and will be going all out to win this match featuring equally talented and in-form players.

Both Bencic and Vekic do not have big serves nor do they have a rock-solid defence. But they have used their fast groundstrokes as their weapons to counter their opponents.

The match may be decided between Bencic's returns and Vekic's serves. The latter must focus on reducing her double faults which have accumulated to 17 after four matches.

Fans will be excited to see the 22-year-old Bencic facing off against a 23-year-old Vekic. The Next-Gen players have been making waves in women's tennis for the last two years and are carving their own space despite heavy competition from the experienced players.

While Bencic possesses form having defeated the defending champion in the previous round, Vekic is known to be a fighter and loves to take her matches down to the wire.

Prediction

Donna Vekic to win in three sets