Halep Rallies To Reach 3rd Canadian Final, Haddad Maia Ousts Pliskova
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From a set down, Simona Halep got into gear and rolled Jessica Pegula 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach her third Canadian Open final. The former No. 1 is a 2-time champion and 2-0 in the final.
Halep, who’ll return to the Top 10, won the title in 2016 and 2018 when the event was also in Toronto.
“I changed a little bit the tactics,” Halep said of the second set adjustment. “In the first set, it was a little bit too fast. She was hitting super strong and I didn’t feel the rhythm. Then I just calmed down and I tried to just push her back a little bit more.”
Halep will seek her 24th career title and first since Melbourne against the red-hot Beatriz Haddad Maia. The Brazilian who lit up the grass season has resumed her ascent on the hard courts in North America upsetting 2021 finalist Karolina Pliskova 6-4, 7-6(7).
“It’s a special moment,” Haddad Maia said. “I think I had a very tough draw. I had to push myself. I played a lot of tough moments.”
She improved to 7-1 against Top 20 players with her second win over the Czech. Pliskova actually led 4-1 in the second however couldn’t maintain the lead.
Haddad Maia will go for her third title against the favored Halep. Haddad Main beat Halep in June on the grass in Birmingham.
“She’s like a champion,” Haddad Maia said of the Romanian. “She’s a person who works very hard. I know it will be a very tough battle, but I’m going to enjoy. I’m going to leave everything on the court.
“I will try to play aggressive. I learned a lot today because in the moments that I wasn’t too aggressive, was playing better than me. … I want to improve that for tomorrow. So I’m going to try to enjoy and play point by point.”
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