Simona Halep and Maria Sharapova will be facing each other for the ninth time in their careers when they clash in the semifinals of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Saturday. Sharapova leads the head-to-head series 7-1, but they have split a pair of meetings since she returned from a meldonium suspension and Halep won their most recent encounter 6-2, 6-2 at the 2017 Beijing event.
Sharapova is 2-0 on clay following three-set wins in the 2014 Madrid final and a few weeks later in the French Open title match.
Halep, of course, has been in this situation–the semis of a premier event–many times before. So her attention may already be somewhat turned to Roland Garros, as the Romanian still has never captured a major title. She has twice finished runner-up on the red clay of Paris, including last spring to underdog Jelena Ostapenko. Halep clinched maintaining the world No. 1 ranking and the No. 1 seed for the French when her 6-2, 6-3 Rome quarterfinal rout of Caroline Garcia on Friday coincided with Caroline Wozniacki’s 6-3, 6-1 loss to Anett Kontaveit.
Prior to beating Garcia, the top seed thrashed Naomi Osaka 6-1, 6-0 and got a walkover from Madison Keys.
Whereas Halep has lost only six total games the entire way, Sharapova took a much more scenic route to the semifinals. The Russian defeated Ashleigh Barty and Dominica Cibulkova in three sets, eased past a fatigued Daria Gavrilova in straight sets, and outlasted Ostapenko 6-7(6), 6-4, 7-5 in a three-hour and 10-minute battle in Friday’s quarters.
“It’s always nice to have a battle with a few ups and downs, and to finish strong,” Sharapova said after surviving Ostapenko. “To get through a match like this against a really high-quality opponent and to end up winning it, I’m quite proud of the effort.
“It’s great to back at this stage. My fans have been so loyal throughout the years and for me to be able to produce this kind of tennis again in front of them is very special.”
But this may be where the impressive run ends. Halep is in fine form, is extremely well-rested, and has always been a force on clay.
Pick: Halep in 2
[polldaddy poll=10008705]
who ya got?
Halep in three
Oh gosh I hope so Big Al. She should be able to hang in there and outlast Maria, fingers crossed.
Either way the winner will have to meet Queen Elina Svitolina on a roll
And either way your brackets are on fire!
Almost skipped my weekly bracket picking because these small tournaments coming up can be so strange to pick.