Simona Halep did a pre-Rogers Cup interview that the women's tour (WTA) posted to its Youtube account. Halep enters the 2017 Rogers Cup having played well in Canada in the past. She is the defending champion at the tournament this season, a result from 2016 that helped her achieve the ranking of World No. 2. While the World No. 1 ranking has eluded Halep for her career thus far, it is possible that she can get to it in the weeks ahead. Halep actually suggested that thinking about getting to the top may be exactly what hindered her at both Roland Garros and at the All England Club earlier this season.
Top players try to stay in the moment
"I was..thinking about being No. 1 too much during the French Open and...Wimbledon," Halep claimed recently in Toronto, "so now I'm done (thinking about that)...I can say it's a big goal for me but it's not the most important thing." Halep then stressed staying healthy as the most important thing before fielding other questions.
When you listen to the top players when they are questioned about their future goals, many of them will say that they try to stay in the moment and not look too far ahead. Not getting ahead of one's self and focusing on the next match alone seems to be a characteristic that's important for success. The French Open and Wimbledon were key tournaments for Halep to get to No.
1. In fact, at Wimbledon, she was just two points from doing so in the quarterfinals before she lost to Johanna Konta. Getting that close to a goal and not accomplishing it would play with a lot of players' minds, but Halep appears to be shifting focus.
Halep will play on Wednesday
The Romanian was active in the Washington draw last week, a tournament that she pulled out of after struggling with the heat in the quarters.
In doing so, she avoided weekend action and the extra rest might serve her well in Canada this week. Halep's name is not on the order of play for Tuesday, but the No. 2 seed will be paying attention to results. She will face either Mirjana Lucic-Baroni or Magdalena Rybarikova.
Previously, Halep appeared likely to face Madison Keys, however the American did pull out of the Rogers Cup after the draw was released.
The listed reason on the official drawsheet is a left-forearm injury, one that Keys likely picked up in Stanford en route to a title over the weekend. Halep shares a path to the final with Venus Williams, Elina Svitolina, Garbine Muguruza, and Svetlana Kuznetsova, among others, so the week ahead in Toronto certainly looks as though it will be a major challenge. However, her focus, according to her comments, will be on the match at hand. That means figuring out Lucic-Baroni or Rybarikova before looking ahead to future matches and long-term goals.
