No. 1 Simona Halep lost in the Cincinnati final for a third time on Sunday evening, making Dutch Kiki Bertens winning her first hard court final, 2-6 7-6(6) 6-2. Halep also missed the Cincinnati Masters title in 2015 and 2017.
“Maybe once I will win one because I love to play here. I was a little bit tired this week but it was a pleasure to come here and play. Definitely, I want to congratulate Kiki. You played amazing and you definitely deserve this title,” Halep stated.
Bertens, rebounding after a quick first set loss, outlasted Romania’s top seed in an exhausting second set tiebreaker, then won five of the final six games in the decider to lift her sixth career title.