World No.1 Simona Halep needed over two-and-a-half hours of bruising baseline tennis to overcome No.3 seed Sloane Stephens in the Rogers Cup final and win her third title of the year.
After a bruising baseline battle with numerous twists and turns, World No.1 Simona Halep of Romania claimed her third title of the year at the Rogers Cup on Sunday, outlasting No.3 seed Sloane Stephens of the United States, 7-6(6), 3-6, 6-4, according to WTA.
“This week, it’s been an amazing effort,” Halep said during her press conference, following the trophy presentation. “It’s brutal, the effort for me. This week it was really tough.”
“Stephens makes me play better and better every time we meet each other, that’s a great thing for me,” said Halep. “Of course, she’s a strong player. I think she’s a complex, if you say in English, complex player. She has everything.”
Both players exhibited a stunning combination of outstanding defense and agile attacking from all sections of the court, and they each won over three-quarters of points on their opponent’s second serves. But it was Halep who held on down the stretch, garnering a crucial break for 5-2 in the third and withstanding a fiery fightback by Stephens to get over the finish line on her fourth championship point.
Women’s Tennis Association ( WTA ) announced on Monday morning the new world ranking following the results of the Montreal tournament (Rogers Cup).
In the new hierarchy, Simona Halep remains first, but she has greatly increased her advantage after winning the Canadian competition.
Thus, Simona has 8,061 points, with nearly 2,000 in front of Danish Caroline Wozniacki.
As the top 10 changes, Caroline Garcia climbs up to 5 and gets to the best position in her career.
Petra Kvitova climbs two places up to six, while Elina Svitolina gets two positions.
In the fall is Garbine Muguruza with a position, ranked 8th.
Top 10:
1. Simona Halep 8.051 points
2. Caroline Wozniacki 6.135
3. Sloane Stephens 5.727
4. Angelique Kerber 5.255
5. Caroline Garcia 4.680
6. Petra Kvitova 4.550
7. Elina Svitolina 4.470
8. Garbine Muguruza 4.400
9. Karolina Pliskova 4.395
10. Julia Goerges 3.905
