Rogers Cup 2015: Saturday Tennis Scores, Results and Updated Draw Schedule

Saturday was a big day at the Rogers Cup, resulting in a primetime stunner with top-seed Serena Williams losing to Belinda Bencic. 

The 18-year-old Bencic became the youngest player to defeat Williams in a tournament in more than a decade, per ESPN Tennis:

"

Bencic d. No. 1 Serena 36 75 64 in Toronto SF 18yo Bencic youngest to beat Serena in completed match since 17yo Sharapova at '04 WTA Finals

— ESPNTennis (@ESPNTennis) August 16, 2015"

As a reward, Bencic will go for her second singles title this year on Sunday against No. 2 seed Simona Halep. 

Halep became the first player to secure a spot in the finals, knocking off Sara Errani in straight sets. The world's No. 3 player needed a strong showing in Canada after a monthlong WTA Tour layoff following her first-round loss at Wimbledon. 

Novak Djokovic had no problems knocking off Jeremy Chardy for the 10th time in 10 career matches, winning in straight sets. The World No. 1 will square off against Andy Murray on Sunday after Murray dispatched Kei Nishikori in straight sets. 

It's crunch time for all of these players, with just two weeks before the U.S. Open begins. Finding some way to build, or maintain, momentum is crucial heading into the season's final major tournament. 

Scores

Matchup	Winner	Score
No. 2 Simona Halep vs. No. 15 Sara Errani	Simona Halep	6-4, 6-4
No. 1 Novak Djokovic vs. Jeremy Chardy	Novak Djokovic	6-4, 6-4
No. 1 Serena Williams vs. Belinda Bencic	Belinda Bencic	6-3, 5-7, 6-4
No. 2 Andy Murray vs. No. 4 Kei Nishikori	Andy Murray	6-3, 6-0

Results will be updated as matches go final

Finals Schedule 

Bracket	Matchup	Start Time (ET)
Women's Singles	No. 2 Simona Halep vs. Belinda Bencic	1 p.m.
Men's Singles	No. 1 Novak Djokovic vs. No. 2 Andy Murray	3 p.m.

Saturday Recap

Bencic's win over Williams was stunning not just because it's unusual to see Williams lose, but because this was the first time in 2015 the world No. 1 went down after winning the first set. 

Williams didn't look to be in serious trouble, even in the second set despite losing a close tiebreaker. It was only in the third set that Bencic really took over, going up 5-1. It's to Williams' credit that she was able to win three games to force the young Switzerland native to step up. 

This has been a breakout tournament for Bencic, who has now defeated three players who were among the top five seeds. She previously knocked off Caroline Wozniacki in the second round and Ana Ivanovic in the quarterfinals. 

The problem for Williams in the match was her serve, as these stats from WTA Insider show:

Even when Williams isn't at her best, being able to outmuscle everyone with her serve can be a great equalizer. It wasn't there enough on Saturday, which allowed Bencic to take advantage of the situation and get the biggest win of her young career. 

Halep's entire run in the Rogers Cup can really be summed up by a single point she won midway through the first set. 

Tied at two games apiece, Halep and Errani put together a marathon rally that left Halep running all over the court before finally securing the point, via the WTA's official Twitter:

It's no surprise to see Halep finding her groove on the hard surface in Canada, as this is her fourth final of 2015, and all of them have come on hard courts. 

Going deeper than that, WTA Insider tweeted out her 2015 match record on hard courts:

Halep is a frustrating player to figure out. She's got so much natural talent and as recently as 2013 won six singles titles in a season, but the 23-year-old has been one-dimensional to this point in her career. 

When you take her off hard courts, she often struggles. Her most consistent major is the Australian Open (hard court), though she did reach the French Open final and Wimbledon semifinal in 2014. That's a sign the Romanian is capable of putting everything together in the biggest events.

The ability to be consistent on all surfaces is what will eventually determine how Halep's career is defined, but right now, her attention will be on a fourth hard-court title in 2015. 

If a Halep win was easy to predict because of her history on this surface, Djokovic's win was a guarantee because of what he's done in Masters 1000 events, per Josh Meiseles of ATPWorldTour.com:

This was also a good performance for Djokovic following his struggles against Ernests Gulbis in the quarterfinals, a match Djoker acknowledged he easily could have lost, per the AFP (h/t Yahoo Sports):

"

Ernests was a better player for two sets -- unfortunately he missed two match points. ... I wasn't very happy with my game. But you have to muscle it out sometimes and I had to put in the effort. One day you play well, the other you don't. It's important to stay committed to every point, believe, fight. That's what gets you out of trouble.

"

Since losing to Stan Wawrinka in the French Open final, Djokovic has been on fire. He's won 11 straight matches and will be the heavy favorite in the final against Murray. 

Things played out as they were expected to in the men's early session at Canada, leaving the final semifinal matchup to produce an upset.

Murray didn't oblige, though. 

While Nishikori entered the Rogers Cup fresh off a win at the Citi Open, Murray sent him packing in just over an hour thanks to a tidy straight-set victory that included a 6-0 second-set cakewalk.  

"It’s true that I didn’t need to work hard in the second," Murray said, according to CoupeRogers.com. "After the loss in Washington, I wanted to do well in Montreal and be satisfied with my tennis. This week, I had some good wins against solid players and played well. So I’m very happy to be in the final."

Now working his way back into a groove following an early exit at the Citi Open, Murray can make a major statement against Djokovic Sunday afternoon. According to CBC, Djokovic is 19-8 all-time against Murray—including eight straight wins.  

Murray will be seeking to buck that trend, but the odds are heavily in Djokovic's favor with a second-consecutive tournament victory at stake.