The Spaniard started the match in the driver’s seat and never took her foot off the gas. Halep’s lackluster performance was a reflection of her nerves. Pliskova’s No. 1 is safe for now, but not for long.
By Todd Muffie
CINCINNATI – The ladies’ final at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati was a clash between the No. 2-seed Simona Halep of Romania and the No. 4-seed Garbine Muguruza of Spain. The two players locked horns for the first time in over two years with not only the Premier 5 title on the line, but also up for grabs was the No. 1 ranking, which after near misses at Roland Garros and Wimbledon Halep could finally claim with victory at the Lindner Family Tennis Center.
Halep, one of the most efficient defenders on the women’s tour, didn’t drop a set during the entire week and for the third time in as many months she managed to put herself in the position of being only one win away from sitting on top of the world rankings.
After capturing her second Grand Slam title at Wimbledon earlier this summer, Muguruza’s road to the Cincy final wasn’t as straightforward as her opponent’s, dropping a couple of sets along the way as well as saving three match points against Madison Keys in the round of 16. Before Sunday’s final, Muguruza lead the head-to-head record with Halep 2-1, winning both encounters on hard courts.
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On a hot and humid Sunday afternoon and in front of a sold-out crowd, the two players had plenty of support from the Cincinnati fans as well as supporters from their own countries. The hopes were high for an entertaining final between two of the most popular players on the WTA Tour. The contrasting styles of the two players were certainly a recipe for beautiful tennis: Muguruza and her powerful game and Halep with her all court counter-punching abilities.
To everyone’s disappointment, today’s final was unfortunately short-lived. The score line was an emphatic 6-1, 6-0 in favor of the Spaniard. Muguruza was poised on the baseline hitting with power and precision and kept Halep on her heels for the entire match. In her post-match press conference, Halep admitted that her nerves affected her ability to move as relentlessly as usual. As a matter of fact, her quick footwork didn’t make an appearance in today’s final at all. The Romanian let Muguruza reel her into a battle of baseline power, instead of playing with her usual variety.
“(Muguruza) played really well, first of all, and she was hitting very strong, and after a few games I got down (in) confidence,” Halep said after the match. “I tried to hit the ball and couldn’t much. Then I tried to go back a little bit and was not good. So today I don’t really know what I had to do, and I think she was just too good today.”
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On the other hand, with this win Muguruza elevates her already stellar summer to even greater heights. The Spaniard seems to have finally found the right balance to capitalize on her success instead of imploding as she did in the past. During the Cincinnati final, she came out on fire and never cooled off.
This is Muguruza’s first title in the United States and judging from the reaction and incredible support that the Spaniard received from the American fans this week, it will probably not be the last.
“I think today was my best performance of the tournament, because I felt like I played 20 hours in that court, you know. I had very long matches,” Muguruza said after the match. “It was just there. I think I did few little mistakes and my shots were very [well] placed and I think I was doing almost everything right there.”
When the new WTA ranking comes out on Monday, Pliskova – who was outclassed by Muguruza in the Cincinnati semifinals – will remain at No. 1 with 6390 points, while Halep will be at No. 2 with 6385. In one of the most exciting races of the past few years, there will only be an incredible five-point gap between the two best players in the world. Muguruza will not be too far behind, in fact she will be ranked at No. 3 with 5860. Many wonder if perhaps she, instead of Pliskova or Halep, will finish the year as the world No. 1. If she does, it might be extremely difficult to pry it out of her hands.
