Kristina Mladenovic into final of the Netherlands’s open 2016

S-HERTOGENBOSCH, Netherlands

It's never easy to face a close friend on the tennis court, and it's even harder to do so when a final is at stake. But that's exactly what No.3 seed Kristina Mladenovic was asked to do and she delivered in emphatic fashion, coming back from a set down to defeat belinda bencic 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 and reach her second career WTA final at the Ricoh Open.

"It feels actually quite nice to play against her," Bencic said after the match. "Obviously we are best friends, and it's nice because it's quite rare that you can have your best friend on the tennis circuit.

"We obviously expected to play each other someday, but we were both prepared."