“Wouldn’t Mind if We Played on the Moon”: Belinda Bencic Contradicts Ashleigh Barty on WTA Finals

Swiss tennis player Belinda Bencic has had one of the most successful seasons in her career. She made her nation proud after winning the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. Bencic recently spoke about the possibility of competing in the season-ending WTA Finals in Mexico.

Interestingly, Belinda Bencic was ready to compromise by playing in unfavorable conditions. On the contrary, World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty was skeptical of competing in the high-altitude region in Mexico. The Swiss star went on to add that she would never mind being part of this tournament, even if it were to be held on the moon. 

Speaking on this topic, Bencic stated, “I would be very happy to make it to the top eight in the Race. I wouldn’t mind if we played on the Moon! It might be a little bit different to usual [in Guadalajara], but when I played in the last WTA Finals in Shenzhen, I found the conditions were very special.”

Barty‘s coach Craig Tyzzer had previously talked about the venue in Mexico and stated, “In conditions, they’ve never played, in a country, they don’t play and at altitude, I just feel it’s ridiculous.”

MASON, OHIO – AUGUST 22: Ashleigh Barty of Australia wipes the sweat from her face against Jil Teichmann of Switzerland during the women’s singles finals of the Western & Southern Open at Lindner Family Tennis Center on August 22, 2021 in Mason, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)

Belinda Bencic is up for challenging conditions 

Belinda remembered the WTA Finals 2019 in Shenzhen, where the court conditions were very slow. Nonetheless, the Swiss national has no issue competing in different conditions. In fact, she is relishing the opportunity to compete at the high altitude in Guadalajara in Mexico. As a professional athlete, she feels it is necessary for a player to adapt to these changes. 

The 24-year-old further added, “If I get to Guadalajara it will probably be the highest altitude I’ve ever played at, so it will just be different. We’re tennis players. We always have to adapt to different conditions. Every week it might look very similar on TV, but it’s not. We’re used to always having to adapt.”

There are still quite a few tournaments to be played prior to the season-ending WTA Finals. It will be interesting to see if she can make it to the Finals and perform well in Mexico.  

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