SINGAPORE: Simona Halep handed an out-of-sorts Serena Williams the joint heaviest defeat of her long and illustrious career as the Romanian beat the world number one 6-0, 6-2 at the WTA Finals yesterday.
As well as Halep played in moving her opponent around Singapore’s purple Indoor hardcourt, the 33-year-old American only had herself to blame for the defeat after her serve fell apart and the errors flowed.
The loss halted the double defending champion’s winning streak at the season-ending event at 16 matches and leaves her needing to beat Eugenie Bouchard, who later lost 6-1, 6-3 to Ana Ivanovic, to reach the last four from the Red Group.
“It was actually embarrassing I think describes the way I played. Yeah, very embarrassing,” Williams said before heaping praise on Halep. “I’ve seen her play a lot. Like I said, she’s never played like this before.”
Williams gave no indication of the struggles that awaited her as she boomed down an ace to start the match between the two players who were impressive in claiming straight sets victories in their opening Red Group matches.
That ace would be one of only nine points the 18-time Grand Slam champion would win in the opening set as her game fell apart to give Maria Sharapova hope of overhauling her to finish the season as world number one.
Halep, serving supremely, needed only 12 minutes to race 4-0 ahead with Williams looking almost in shock at her routine failure to send simple groundstrokes over the net.
The American, looking for a fifth WTA Finals title, also tossed in six double faults with the few second serves that did make it over getting rough treatment from Halep.
The Romanian, runner-up at the French Open earlier this year, grew in confidence as Williams offered little hope of a recovery. Halep, who beat Bouchard in her opener on Monday, smashed an ace to take the set 6-0 at the third opportunity. The last time Williams lost a set 6-0 was in Madrid last year at the hands of Anabel Medina Garrigues, but then she bounced back to win the match and the tournament. That scenario never looked like repeating itself yesterday.
Jumping around in between points and screaming at herself in an attempt to get out of the hole, she finally got herself on the board in the ninth game as she held serve to make it 2-1.
Williams then rallied on the impressive Halep serve to force a break point but the 23-year-old Romanian snuffed it out with another ace and went on to make the key hold for 3-1.
Rather than feel the heat as the victory line approached, Halep revelled. She stepped away from her traditional counter-punch game and went on the front foot, landing attacking groundstrokes to move Williams around the court as she moved 5-2 ahead with the American despondent.
She claimed the famous win on her first match point, when Williams dumped another forehand into the net as she matched her career worst two game total from a 1998 defeat by Joannette Kruger in Oklahoma City.
“The biggest match of my life. I’m really happy,” Halep said after becoming only the second woman to beat Williams in straight sets in a WTA Finals match after Kim Clijsters in 2002.
Heading into the final round of matches, all four players can still advance from the Red Group although Halep is virtually assured of qualifying after winning her first two matches while Williams and Ivanovic have a win and loss apiece. Bouchard faces an almost impossible task to reach the semis after two heavy defeats but is still mathematically in with a chance of advancing.
REUTERS
SINGAPORE: Ana Ivanovic recovered from her opening loss to race to a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Eugenie Bouchard yesterday, putting the world number seven back into the mix for a WTA Finals last-four berth.
The Serb was edged by Serena Williams in her first appearance in the elite eight-woman event on Monday, but was ruthlessly efficient on her first serve to breeze past her Canadian opponent in her second match on Singapore’s purple hard court.
After Simona Halep had stunned Williams 6-0, 6-2 in the first match of the day to virtually assure a place in the semi-finals, Ivanovic drew level with the American on a win and a loss apiece with Bouchard propping up the Red Group following two defeats.
Ivanovic took heart from her 6-4, 6-4 defeat to Williams in the tournament curtain raiser on Monday, and carried that form into her match against Bouchard, a player who has beaten her in their two previous meetings, racing to a 5-0 lead on the back of a perfect 12-for-12 points on first serve display.
Short of match fitness, Bouchard struggled with her movement and misfired with her constant attempts to hit booming winners, but finally got on the scoreboard in the sixth game of the opening set before Ivanovic sealed it in the next game.
The 20-year-old Canadian finally won a point on Ivanovic’s first serve in the final game of the set but the Serb converted both break points she manufactured, and saved the two she offered, to seal the set in 34 minutes.
“This is the beauty of the round robin system that I still had a chance. No matter what, I came out here today to try to enjoy the match after I had lost to her twice before,” Ivanovic said in a courtside interview.
“I knew she was confident coming into the match but I made sure I was aggressive and stepped in, so I am very pleased.”
The second set was a much tighter affair after the duo had traded early breaks with Ivanovic seizing control of the contest in a marathon seventh game to edge 4-3 ahead when Bouchard double-faulted on her sixth break point.
It was a pivotal moment and despite looking tight and tentative as the finish line approached, a big serve and beautiful sliced backhand staved off a couple of break points as Ivanovic moved to within one game of victory.
“The seventh game was huge and I had lots of break points that I didn’t convert. But I was really happy to finally seal the break and I came strong through a very tough service game straight after,” she added.
The 27-year-old could smell blood and put too much gas on a forehand on her first match point but was far more accurate with her second opportunity, another thumping forehand forcing Bouchard to go long, with the Serb raising her arms in victory after 82 minutes.
Bouchard will attempt to gain what appears to be a consolation win against Williams today before the Red Group concludes with Ivanovic taking on the imperious Halep a day later. REUTERS
