Bertens blasts past Kvitova in Montreal third-round upset

MONTREAL, Canada -- Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands claimed her sixth Top 10 win of the year with a straightforward 6-3, 6-2 victory over No.8 seed Petra Kvitova at the Rogers Cup on Thursday, entering the quarterfinals at the event for the first time in her career.

"[Kvitova] came up with a few good points," Bertens told the press, after her win. "Then I was like, 'Okay, you just have a few more chances here.' I was not really getting nervous already. I was just trying to stay calm, trying to hit the balls back in the court. That was it."

Read more: Bertens - 'I'm doing things my way' ahead of Kvitova clash

Bertens had lost her previous two meetings against the 2012 Rogers Cup champion, including a nearly three-hour championship match in Madrid earlier this year. But Bertens was dominant on the day in Montreal, outplaying the former World No.2 in one hour and 12 minutes.

The players finished the match with an equal amount of winners -- eight apiece -- but Kvitova was undone by a whopping 28 unforced errors, nearly double Bertens' 15. The strong serving by Bertens was matched by her fearless returning, breaking the vaunted Kvitova delivery five times in the match, off of her seven break points.

"I think that's what I'm really happy with, that I'm not playing my best but winning quite easy like the scoreline," Bertens continued. "I think the level in general, I raised my game."

In the final eight, Bertens will come up against No.15 seed Ashleigh Barty of Australia. Barty got past Frenchwoman Alize Cornet in straight sets earlier on Thursday.

"It's going to be a difficult match, of course," Bertens said of her upcoming tussle with Barty. "She's playing some great tennis. Smart girl, also with a lot of slice. I don't know what the conditions are going to be tomorrow, but we'll see then. We'll make a good plan, and hopefully it's going to be a great match."

The big-hitting players blasted serves and groundstrokes at each other throughout the first set, but it was the unseeded Dutchwoman who claimed the upper hand, clinching the first break of the set for a 4-3 lead, following a clutch of unforced errors by the left-handed Czech.

More power play from Bertens continued to frustrate Kvitova as the set wore on, as rallies often concluded with mistakes by the two-time Wimbledon champion, en route to a 5-3 lead for Bertens.

The Dutch player kicked off Kvitova’s next service game with a bang, shooting a crosscourt passing shot off of a brutal Kvitova backhand for a winner. Bertens rolled through the game from there, breaking Kvitova for a second time with a forehand passing shot down the line. Kvitova had 15 unforced errors in the set, well over Bertens’ six.

A wild second set with plentiful breaks of service was nevertheless dominated by Bertens, who took a 2-0 lead after Kvitova handed over another break of serve to the World No.18 by firing a shocking forehand wide while down break point. 

Bertens double faulted on break point in the following game, allowing Kvitova back on serve and concluding the Dutchwoman's six-game winning streak. But Kvitova could not ever gain momentum due to all of her errors, dropping serve again and allowing Bertens to reclaim the single-break lead at 3-1.

Bertens picked up another break and served for the match at 5-1, but here, Kvitova demonstrated the craft which brought her two Wimbledon titles, pounding forehands at the Bertens backhand until it cracked, eventually breaking for 5-2.

But this was rendered moot as Kvitova never once held serve in the second set. Consecutive forehand errors in the final game sealed her fate, and Bertens emerged the winner for the first time in their hard-hitting rivalry.