Reuters
Toronto, July 31: Fifth-seeded Romanian Simona Halep overcame a crisis of confidence in the second set to reach the final of the Rogers Cup with a 6-0, 3-6, 6-2 upset victory over second seed Angelique Kerber of Germany here Saturday.
Halep had been a set and a break up before Kerber reeled off six straight games to lead 2-0 in the third before the Romanian regained control, sealing the win after a topsy-turvy encounter that lasted one hour 38 minutes. The 24-year-old, who was beaten by Kerber in the last eight at Wimbledon July 5, will take on 10th-seeded American Madison Keys in Sunday’s final at the hardcourt event.
Keys swept past unseeded qualifier Kristina Kucova of Slovakia 6-2, 6-1 in the other semifinal, serving up nine aces as she wrapped up victory in just 51 minutes. A frustrated Halep smashed her racket on the ground during the seventh game of the second set after squandering her 3-2 lead and her coach, Darren Cahill, gave her quiet words of advice during the changeover.
Though Halep was also broken in the next game before Kerber leveled the match at a set all and then raced 2-0 up in the third, the Romanian heeded Cahill’s advice and wrested back the initiative with a more positive approach from the baseline. Halep won the last six games of the match, wrapping up victory on her fourth match point when a net cord by the left-handed Kerber bounced just wide.
