Halep snaps Sharapova losing streak

After eight attempts, Simona Halep has finally beaten nemesis Maria Sharapova.

The world No.2 snapped her seven-match losing streak against the five-time Grand Slam champion with a comprehensive 6-2 6-2 third round win at the China Open today. On paper it looks like a major breakthrough for the Romanian – but in reality, it was far from that.

Expectations were high for the match-up, especially after their recent high-quality US Open round one showdown. Sharapova spoke about the rivalry pre-match, describing their past matches as always being “very challenging, tough, competitive, emotional.”

But this encounter did not deliver. Underwhelming is a more apt description.

The physicality and intense rallies that made their New York meeting so compelling was missing.

Halep was steady, making 74 per cent of first serves and conceding a total of 11 points in her service games. But the telling stat – of the 63 points Halep won in the 72-minute victory, more than half of them were from Sharapova unforced errors.

“She was sharp and I wasn’t,” Sharapova conceded in her post-match press conference.

Halep advances to a quarterfinal meeting with either defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska or rising Russian Daria Kasatkina.

Sharapova, who is projected to return to the world’s top 100 at No.86 after her third round run, plays in Tianjin next week.