TORONTO — Top-ranked Serena Williams stumbled in the Rogers Cup semifinals Saturday night, falling 6-3, 5-7, 4-6 to Swiss teenager Belinda Bencic.
The winner of the first three Grand Slam events of the season, the 33-year-old Williams lost for only the second time in 45 matches this season. She won titles in Toronto titles in 2001, 2011 and 2013.
The 18-year-old Bencic, ranked 20th, has knocked off three seeded players en route to her first career appearance in a Premier-5 Level event. She opened with a victory over Canada's Eugenie Bouchard and followed with wins over fourth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki, Sabine Lisicki and fifth-seeded Ana Ivanovic.