Simona Halep would like to set the record straight – her newly-acquired “chilled” mindset this season does not mean she isn’t deadly serious about doing everything in her power to lift the Venus Rosewater Dish on Saturday.
A history-maker already this Fortnight as Romania’s first female Wimbledon singles finalist, Halep is hoping to add a second Grand Slam title to her CV, after triumphing at Roland-Garros last season.
Although she will be facing seven-time champion Serena Williams, Halep cut a relaxed figure in her Thursday press conference as she cracked jokes, revealed she would love the Duchess of Cambridge to attend one of her matches, and explained how she became friends with three-time snooker world champion Mark Selby. They met in Romania a few times and he’s one of just two people she follows on Twitter.
“I hope Simona can win the final. I am rooting for her and wish her the best of luck on Saturday,” Selby said.
The 27-year-old Halep, into a fifth major final, has had a tremendous few years on Tour, ending 2017 and 2018 as world No.1, clinching a maiden Grand Slam title and bringing dominance and consistency to an exciting but often volatile WTA circuit.
After winning in Paris last year, the Romanian allowed herself to relax and enjoy life off-court a little more. She does not, she insists, equate this with being any less committed to her tennis.
"'Chilling' doesn't mean that I'm not working hard or I'm not focused on what I have to do. It's just that as a person I want to chill. We see that I'm better on court,” Halep said after her semi-final success over Elina Svitolina.
Halep’s head-to-head record against Williams is heavily skewed towards the American (1-9 in previous meetings) but not everyone is discounting the No.7 seed’s chances.
“Absolutely there is hope for Simona, because she has been in a Grand Slam final before and she has won it,” says former world No.5 Daniela Hantuchova. “So she’s full of confidence and she’s having such a great time off the court. She’s so relaxed and that’s bringing the best tennis out of her and I don’t think anything’s going to change in the next 48 hours.
“And Serena knows she has to play like she did today [against Barbora Strycova in the semis] to be able to get through Simona. Because for Simona the way to win this match is to stay in long rallies and try to move Serena as much as she can.”
Halep has dropped just one set, against fellow Romanian Mihaela Buzarnescu in the second round. She has shown strong numbers on return, winning 53 per cent of her return games this Fortnight, and spending just eight-and-a-half hours on court.
“There's so many impressive things about her,” Williams said of Halep. “Obviously her tenacity. Her ability to improve every time. Her ability to find power. Can't underestimate her. She's like a little powerhouse. She finished the year No. 1 twice in a row.”
Nine-time Wimbledon champion Martina Navratilova believes it’s a tough task for Halep to win on Saturday but says there are a few things she can do to make Williams uncomfortable.
“Serena knows that she has to beat Simona. Simona's not going to beat herself,” Navratilova wrote on wtatennis.com. “If Simona is going to beat Serena, she needs to serve well and really mix it up. I would throw in some body serves. Serena likes to step into the return. But you can jam her with a body serve, which she doesn't like.
“I would also advise Simona - though I know this is going to be a tall order - to play down the line rather than going cross-court. With cross-court, you wait for the ball. Everyone cheats cross-court, but Serena particularly. When you hit cross-court to Serena she doesn't have to move - she's already there. When you hit down the line to her, she has to move to the ball.
“Simona has to get the first strike because when she's on the defensive, Serena will get closer to the baseline, and it will become that much harder to go down the line.
“Above all, Simona needs to stay with Serena. Serena is an amazing frontrunner. When she gets ahead, she relaxes and doesn't feel the pressure as much.”
For Halep, the key is believing in her abilities and that she has a genuine chance to beat Williams.
“I have learned that I have the chance,” she says, looking back at her previous battles with Williams. “Now I will believe that I have my chance to win against her. Of course, I respect a lot what she has done and what she's doing. But now I feel stronger mentally facing her.”
