Bencic comes back from the brink to beat Cirstea and reach US Open third round

Swiss Belinda Bencic, the No 13 seed, rescued herself from the brink of defeat as she came from a set and 5-3 down to beat Romanian Sorana Cirstea 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 in the second round of the US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York on Thursday.

World No 37 Cirstea served for the match at 6-3, 5-3 only for Bencic, the Olympic champion, to win the next four games to level, before pulling away in the decider.

Bencic, ranked No 13, will face the winner of the match between former runner-up Karolina Pliskova and her fellow Czech Marie Bouzkova. The Swiss, a semi-finalist in New York in 2019, edged out the now retired German Andrea Petkovic (6-2, 4-6, 6-4) in the previous round of the Flushing Meadows.

Cirstea had defeated German Laura Siegemund 6-4, 6-4 in the first round.

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