I played really well when she had break points to make it 4-1 in the deciding set. I’m very happy with the way I came back in the end. I’m a bit injured in my leg (no muscle contracture) but the happiness is huge , that I managed to win today. Now I will rest, I will recover and I hope to go out on the field and enjoy tomorrow’s final” , said the Romanian. After that, our athlete gave a wider interview to WTA reporters:
“I didn’t start the match very well. I was a bit emotional, because there were a lot of supporters from Romania in the stands. I couldn’t hit the ball properly, I couldn’t move, but after I got injured, the physio helped me a lot. I played very well and I wanted to win for my fans, because I beat Sam (No. Stosur) in the final, but with safety and she wants the rematch very much,” said Halep.
Halep enjoyed the support of a consistent gallery from Romania, and the Constantinian is now preparing for the sixth final of her career. She won the first five, and Halep is ready, in 2014, to climb into the world top 10, a feat that only two other sportswomen from Romania have achieved in their careers: Virginia Ruzici (no. 8) and Irina Spârlea ( No. 7).
Ana Ivanovic complimented Halep for her game: “I had many opportunities in the deciding set, but I dropped my level a bit and it was very difficult for me to come back. Halep served very well in the last game. Now she plays with a lot of confidence, shows impressive consistency and has improved his game a lot”.
Simona Halep (22 years old) has every chance to conquer the Tournament of Champions in Sofia, after eliminating the favorite no. 2, Ana Ivanovic, score 2-6, 6-1, 6-3. Although she lost the first set and was leading 3-0 in the decider, the Romanian came back heroically and prevailed in the end.
The game lasted about two hours and brought out the best in the athlete from Constanta. In the first round, Halep did not find herself at all and lost 6-2 in favor of the Serbian. In the second set, our athlete found her rhythm and didn’t give her rival any chance, which she tied in sets, after 6-1. Entry into the decider, however, did not go to Simona.
Ivanovic broke first, served and then broke again. At 3-0 and with serve on her side, nothing seemed to stop Ana. And yet Halep found the resources to come back, restoring parity! From there, Ivanovic fell for good. It was 4-3 for Halep, then a break followed at 15 and the final game, also at 15, which confirmed the qualification of world number 14 in the last act. There, Halep is awaited by Stosur, who defeated Pavlyuchenkova.
Halep’s stats weren’t great, but her strength and aggression helped her on the hard-hitting Sofia. With 64% of her serves placed correctly, Halep won exactly half of her points on the first serve. She saved 9 break points out of 14 and made 7 chances on her rival’s serve, thus equaling Ivanovic in direct matches, where the score became 1-1.
Simona Halep managed 6 aces in the match with Ivanovic. Sârboaica managed only 4
