Boulter accentuates positives in wake of Bencic’s masterclass

Before her meeting with one of the most inform players in the world, Katie Boulter reassured herself in all the right ways.

- Tumaini Carayol

Belinda Bencic (top) overwhelmed Katie Boulter (left) in the opening set, with the Britton's ball-striking feeding right into the 10th seed's game

(Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

All the pressure, she reasoned, would be on her opponent’s shoulders and nobody expected her to win, meaning this was the perfect chance to swing freely.

Even when playing with total freedom, toppling a confident top-10 player is an immense challenge. 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 the sensational Swiss, who closed out a comfortable 6-0, 7-5 win.

This was a statement performance from Bencic, who has started the season 6-0 for the first time in her career and has established herself as a title contender in Melbourne. “She belongs in the top 10,” Boulter said.