The Romanian Simona Halep, fifteenth in the world, won this Sunday the wta tournament 1000 of Toronto by beating Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia (24) in the final 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 in two hours and 18 minutes of play.
The 30-year-old Romanian won the Canadian Open for the third time after the 2016 and 2018 editions and with this Sunday’s victory she added her ninth crown in WTA 1000 tournaments, being the third player to reach that figure, behind Serena Williams (13) and Belarusian Victoria Azarenka (10).
With her victory in Toronto, Halep will return to the Top-10 of the women’s ranking this Monday.
“I was there for many years, but now I feel like it’s a big deal to get back into the top 10. I am very happy with this performance. When I started the year I wasn’t very confident and I set myself the goal of being in the top ten at the end of the year, and here I am,” said Halep.
“It’s a very special moment. I’ll enjoy it. I’ll give myself credit. I’m just dreaming for more,” added the Romanian.
Halep’s experience made the difference in beating Haddad Maia.
“I am very happy to be able to win here as well. There are many Romanians here and they always come to support me », she said.
Two-time winner of Grand Slam tournaments, Roland Garros in 2018 and Wimbledon in 2019, Halep thus reached the twenty-fourth title of her career.
Haddad Maia26, had shown an excellent pace in Toronto by eliminating the world number one, the Polish Iga Swiatek, in the round of 16, then the Swiss Belinda Bencic (12) and in the semifinals the Czech Karolina Pliskova (14).
The 26-year-old Brazilian scored few points in the ranking when she came out of the pandemic confinement and her doping suspension two years ago.
Her excellent present this year, with titles in tournaments such as Birmingham and Nottingham and the final in Toronto, will lead her to get into the Top-20 of the ranking for the first time.
Haddad Maia also became the first Brazilian to reach the WTA 1000 final and the first left-handed finalist at the Canadian tournament since Petra Kvitova in 2012.
“It was an emotional start. She couldn’t stand the emotions. I couldn’t control myself. Simona began to play better. I was trying to be more aggressive. But today Simona deserved it, she played better than me. She was braver. Sometimes we learn, and today was a day to learn, “said the Brazilian.
