Belinda Bencic's comeback from maternity earned hit a new milestone on Friday at the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open, as she dethroned defending champion and top seed Elena Rybakina in a 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 semifinal to reach her first Hologic WTA Tour-level final since becoming a mother last year. 

Abu Dhabi: Draws | Scores | Order of play | 411

Bencic, the 2023 champion in Abu Dhabi, improved to 8-0 in her career at the tournament with a 2 hour and 6 minute victory over the World No. 5, also her first Top 10 victory since the spring of that season. 

Abu Dhabi marks just the seventh tournament at any level for the former World No. 4, playing in the field as a wild card, since the April 2024 birth of her daughter, Bella. To win her first title since the 2023 Credit Open Charleston Open -- played just weeks after she won in Abu Dhabi -- Bencic will face another unseeded opponent in American Ashlyn Krueger, who is through to her first WTA 500-level final.

"I'm so happy that this is happening," Bencic said after the match. "I worked really hard to come back. It was definitely not an easy road, and I'm so excited that the results are coming so fast.

It doesn't mean the work is over, I have a long way to go, but I'm really happy how it's working on the court and I'm really enjoying myself."

More to come...