Belinda Bencic becomes first Swiss Billie Jean King Cup Heart Award winner

The main reason why Switzerland was in the final was Belinda Bencic. The Swiss player saw the most success in 2021 when playing for Switzerland winning the Olympic Gold Medal in Tokyo. She enjoyed some more success at the Billie Jean King Cup finals leading Switzerland to the final but ultimately it was not enough as Russia proved better.

Her efforts were noted and she is the first-ever Swiss winner of the Billie Jean King Cup Heart Award meant for the players with the best performances at the event. The winner was determined by fan voting and Bencic was chosen by fans among other candidates that included Danielle Colins, Viktoria Kuzmova, Ludmilla Samsonova, and Storm Sanders.

On the award Bencic said:

"I am really happy to have won the Billie Jean King Cup Heart Award. I love to compete for my country and to get it is a real honor for me. With this money, I am going to donate it to dog shelters because our dear dog Paula is also adopted."

The award carried a 10.000 $ prize which will be allocated to five differnt dog shelters in Slovakia.