Fifth seed Simona Halep safely moved into the second round of the US Open with a 6-0 6-2 win over 56th-ranked Kirsten Flipkens.
The Romanian started the match with very aggressive tennis, dictating the game and leading 4-0 after only 15 minutes. Flipkens did put up a good defense, but hit many unforced errors.
Halep played her game and was very confident, winning all of her break points and improving her lead to 5-0. The sixth game was very tight, both players making many unforced errors, but also playing a few great points. Halep ended up taking the set 6-0 in just 25 minutes.
In the second set, Flipkens raised her level, but so did Halep, not giving Flipkens a chance and forcing her to make errors. Halep quickly established a 2-0 lead, playing some excellent tennis. The next few games were a little more tight, Flipkens gaining confidence, but Halep still prevailing, coming to a 5-0 lead. Flipkens won the next game, saving a match point, after Halep started showing some signs of insecurity.
Flipkens played some good tennis to win the next game. However, Halep raised her level of play to win the match 6-0 6-2.
In her on-court interview, Halep said that she is very happy with her match and is looking forward to her next round. She will next face Lucie Safarova, who defeated Daria Gavrilova 6-4 6-4.
Simona has a tough second round match against Lucie Safarova. And what’s with Ivanovic..she has lost in three straight Grand Slam first rounds. I think she is “mailing it in” because she is now married and I will bet you that baby will soon be “on the way”.