United Cup: Switzerland lead Kazakhstan in Group B

BRISBANE: World No.12 Belinda Bencic opened her season with a tense 7-6(0), 6-3 win over No. 51 Yulia Putintseva on Day 1 of the United Cup, before Marc-Andrea Huesler extended Switzerland's lead to 2-0 against Kazakhstan in Group B, here on Thursday.

Bencic secured the straight-sets win by coolly reeling in Putintseva, who led by a break early in both sets.

After falling behind 4-1 in the opening set, Bencic fought off three set points on her serve to level at 5-5. She took her momentum into the tiebreak, where she kept a clean sheet to secure the opening set after 72 minutes.

Meanwhile, Huesler also needed to work hard, ultimately battling past 21-year-old Timofey Skatov 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 after 2 hours and 23 minutes. IANS

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