From Neupotz, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany, January 2018
Side Note: It was satifsfying for me as a Romanian to witness Simona's way
into the semifinals, and I was also very pleased to see Korean's Jeong Hyeon's
impressive performance at this tournament.
Halep-Kerber 6-3 4-6 9-7
The second semifinal in the women's tournament in Australia.
It seemed so easy for Halep to bring the score to 5-0 as Kerber did not play much
in the beginning of the match.
After an unbalanced first set however, Kerber came back and won the seond one.
Both players were great, but the thrid set was heart attack
after heart attack for any of the supporters of these two players, and
perhaps for the players themselves too.
The Romanian, twice a French Open runner-up, saved two match points on her way to victory.
At the score 7:8 Angelique Kerber struggled with a good baseline game before Halep made the
crucial point, and narrowly missed the final of this Australian Open.
Speaking courtside, Halep said:
"It was very tough.. I'm shaking now, very emotional. She's a very good opponent,
moving well, hitting from everywhere. I'm really glad I could win this match.
I tried to be very calm. Today was like a rollercoaster, up and down,
but I didn't give up. "
"I had just confidence in myself. I decided after I twisted my ankle (in the first round)
that I would fight for every point in this tournament and then I wold rest.
I didn't give up, not even a ball.
If you don't give up, you van win the match in the end.
I did it an I'm really proud of myself actually."
Halep will face Caroline Wozniacki in the final on Saturday. Both players are seeking
to win their first Grand Slam title, and Wozniacki is also looking forward
to replace Halep as WTA Number One.
<In the other semifinal, Wozniacki beat Belgian Mertens in two sets 3-6 6(2)-7(7)>
Following is the current ranking of the first 5 players.
The winner of the tournament will be awarded 2000 ranking points
and the runner-up 1300 points.
If Caroline wins on Saturday, she will be the new Number One.
Australian Open point system:
Win: 2000
Runner-up: 1300
Semifinals: 780
Quarter-finals: 430
4th round: 240
3rd round: 130
2nd round: 70
1st round: 10
Angelique Kerber is a former champion of the Australian Open.
In 2016 she won the trophy after a match against Serena Williams.
bbc.com
express.co.uk
theguardian.com
spiegel.de
