World number one, Simona Halep won her fourth match in 48 hours as she reaches the Montreal final with an impressive 6-4 6-1 win over Ashleigh Barty.
Despite comments about potentially being tired today, the Romanian made a lightening fast start as she made Barty pay for her lack of pace with the top seed racing out to a 4-1 lead. However the Australian, who has a funky game style full of slices mixed with power as the 15 seed broke back in a long game. The Roland Garros champion was told to relax by coach, Darren Cahill and it seemed to work as Halep remained focused on the task at hand, with her backhand impressing throughout the match.
The world number one sealed the first set to love in 38 minutes as she took control of the match. Despite the mini-comeback in the first set, the Australian seemed to be frustrated as she was unable to play her best tennis. The second set saw more of Barty unable to settle into a rhythm as Halep continued to get into the mind of the 22 year old.
Just like the first set the Romanian used her fantastic backhand to obtain a double break lead as she looked for a second consecutive final in Montreal. However this time Halep refused to buckle as she raised her level into top gear and continued to press forward. The Romanian broke for a third time and sealed the match on her fourth match to reach her fifth final of the season.
The Roland Garros champion is now joint with Petra Kvitová for the most finals in 2018 and now has 41 wins this season, which is unmatched by any player on the tour. The world number one will now play either US Open champion, Sloane Stephens or defending champion Elina Svitolina in tomorrow’s final.
