The WTA Tour got past the half of the clay court swing with 2017 french open looming ahead. Struggling with health issues and bad shape during the first part of the season, Simona Halep revived her 2017 run in a matter of weeks competing on her favorite surface which is clay.
A severe meltdown feeling earlier this year in Miami seems to have been the lowest point of the trajectory as the Romanian bounced back to finally put in some solid tennis whether it was about Fed Cup or the professional tour. A refreshing reset was capped with the second title in a row in Madrid while this week she holds the headlines in Rome at a Premier 5 event.
Rome is a place for confirmation
Last week, playing in Madrid's final against Kristina Mladenovic, Simona Halep produced some of her finest game by simply outplaying the French player. In Rome, the draw put Halep on a difficult track having to deal with some tough opponents.
A top seed, she received a bye in the opening round and had Laura Siegemund on the plate for the next one. The German clay specialist has recently topped Halep in Stuttgart as she did in 2016. This time, the Romanian stood strong on her base, and despite playing some delightful game of tennis, Siegemund stepped off the court in defeat.
For Halep, earlier today it was Pavlyuchenkova standing on the other side of the net. In the end, it went well for Halep who won by 1-6 6-4 0-6.
The entire match was about Halep and her ability to keep things on her side of the court.
The second set was lost due to a lack of focus which allowed the Russian to be more aggressive especially on Halep's second serve. For the Romanian player, the last eight stages bring Anett Kontaveit (68 WTA). The 21-year-old from Estonia has been on fire recently as she went through qualifying stage in Rome.
Now, she looks further for a place in the semis. To do so, she must get past Halep, a player who ousted her earlier this season in Miami's round of 32.
Simona Halep tackling her odds at the French Open
From what've seen on the WTA Tour, the clay season puts Simona Halep on top of the list when it comes to the French Open. A runner-up back in 2014 during her best career's season, Halep is yet to level that result.
Last year she was stopped in the fourth round by Samantha Stosur.
A certain state of disarray is roaming through the WTA Tour with some top players being totally out of focus recently. Angelique Kerber, the world no. 1, has suffered another humiliating exit in Rome. Dominika Cibulkova is far from her peak while last year's French Open champion Garbine Muguruza is struggling with form.
If she doesn't regroup fast at the end of Roland Garros, she will drop significantly in the ranking. All these aspects put Halep in a winning position. Moreover, her kryptonite ( Sharapova or Serena Williams) is off the table for the French Open. Sharapova was not given a wild-card entry while Serena won't compete for the rest of the season.
