If one element has characterised Simona Halep’s Grand Slam game since she won Roland-Garros last year, it could be described as a crisis of contentment – her ravenous competitive hunger apparently sated by lifting the trophy in Paris 13 months ago.
Earlier this week, she spoke of feeling comfortable with this new laid back approach, but then she was invited to look ahead to her third round match against her fellow former world No.1 Victoria Azarenka, and made this most untypical statement of intent: “For sure I will win it.” And on Day Five at Wimbledon 2019, she delivered on that pledge.
With every other seed in her quarter of the draw having fallen, and widely seen as under threat from Azarenka’s grass-suited game, Halep weathered an early storm to come through 6-3, 6-1 in 66 minutes to reach the last 16.
“I felt great on court and I played my best tennis here on grass,” the No.7 seed said as she left Centre Court. “It’s always tough to face her. I was very positive and confident and gave everything I had. I’ve gained confidence match by match here. The first two were not easy. I hope I can play better. I never look at the draw, just take it match by match. Now I will just chill.”
These two stood at 2-2 in career jousts, with Azarenka – now ranked No.40 – victory-free since her salad days of 2012, during her reign at the top of the tennis tree. But Halep has lost three times this year to players ranked outside the top 30, and this looked exactly the kind of encounter where her current relaxed mindset would put her in peril.
Their last meeting, on these very lawns two years ago, produced a straight sets win for Halep – but that match was only Azarenka’s second tournament back after the birth of her son Leo, in December 2016. She looked lean and sharp coming into this one, boosted by delivering 29 winners in her opening round against Alize Cornet, and allowing Ajla Tomljanovic just a pair of games in round two.
With that form signalling serious danger, in this one Azarenka’s start promised much. As usual emitting her sing-song signature “coo” on every stroke, her first serve was unshakeable, and she was all confident authority. By contrast, Halep couldn’t find her own first serve, and was horribly vulnerable on her second. When Azarenka broke for 3-1, it looked as if Halep had a battle on her hands. But the Belarusian began haemorrhaging errors at a disastrous rate, stacking up 20 in the opening set alone.
Her opponent, meanwhile, had started flexing her muscles, threading outright winners alongside her trademark ability to chase down every ball, forcing Azarenka to hit one more shot until she missed. Azarenka’s serve was crumbling as she struggled to cope with Halep’s return. From 1-3 down, the Romanian plundered five games to grab the set.
Earning break points had not been Azarenka’s problem in that opening chapter, but the chances she had were not converted. At the start of the second she was still typically combative, her appetite for the fight always to be relied on. Forcing Halep to scrap, she found her old foe equal to it as Halep hit ever deeper until it was Azarenka who was sent into terminal retreat.
It is five years since Halep was a semi-finalist here, and almost no one has mentioned the Romanian as a contender for this title, even allowing for the wide-open field in the women’s draw. But you have to be in it to win it, and unlike all the other seeds in her quarter, Halep is through to the second week at Wimbledon 2019.
