Simona Halep was not afraid to display her emotions during her 6-2, 7-5, win over Carla Suarez Navarro in the fourth round of the US Open.
Chasing after every ball and screaming when she made mistakes, it could have been mistaken that the fifth seed was playing in the final. In what was a perfect start by Halep, she raced to a 4-0 lead against a below-par Suarez Navarro. The Spaniard occasionally produced glimpses of her magical shot-making, but it was not consistent enough to do any substantial damage in the match as the Romanian eased to the first set lead.
It was a familiar storyline in the second set with Halep taking advantage of her opponent’s fragile serve, which failed to go over the 50% winning mark. It seemed as if Halep would cruise to the straight sets win until an unusual situation towards the end of the match. Leading by a set and 5-3, play was halted as Suarez Navarro took an ‘urgent toilet break’. The disruption resulted in Halep losing her serve, prompting her to throw her racket around the court. It was an unusual reaction for the normally level-headed Halep, but nevertheless she managed to break once again and close the match out in straight sets.
“I’m really happy that I could win this match. It’s really tough to play against her (Suarez Navarro) and she is a great player.“ The fifth seed said during her on-court interview.
“I just gave it everything I had. I really wanted to win this match, it was really important to me.”
Addressing her highly animated emotions during the match, Halep remained coy about what it is about her opponents game that frustrates her.
“I cannot say what she does that bothers me because she will do it more and more.” Halep joked. “It’s always tough and I have to run a lot against her. I just wanted to be more aggressive.”
Producing four aces and 25 winners, Halep has progressed to the last eight in the tournament for the second consecutive year, where she faces a potential showdown against Serena Williams.
“The next round will be a very tough one. I just want to enjoy this victory because it means a lot to me and we will see what will happen next.“ She concluded.
