Halep through the 3rd round of Cincinnati tour

World No.4, Romanian tennis player Simona Halep advanced to the 3rd round of the Western & Southern Open WTA tournament in Cincinnati (Ohio) on Wednesday, after she defeated German player Annika Beck, 6-3, 6-1, in a 2nd round match.

Halep won in only 55 minutes, managing no less than 7 aces.

Heavy rain delayed the start of play for a couple of hours and with more interruptions forecast, Halep was clearly keen to get on with things. In the end, last year’s runner-up required just 55 minutes to wrap up a 6-3, 6-1 victory and extend her unbeaten run.

“I’m really happy I’m back here in Cincinnati – I have great memories from last year – I played very good tennis today and I’m really happy with my game,” Halep said.

Simona Halep, who was a finalist last year in the Open in Cincinnati, secured a 29,320 USD cheque and 105 WTA points.

In the third round she will face Russian-born Australian player Daria Gavrilova, who is a familiar foe to the Romanian player. The pair have already met twice this year, sharing the spoils in Rome and Montréal, and Gavrilova set up a rubber match with an impressive 6-2, 6-2 win over No.17 seed Elina Svitolina.