By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Simona Halep rolled through five straight games stopping Lesia Tsurenko, 6-2, 6-3, to roll into the Qatar Open quarterfinals—and rise to world No. 2.
Photo credit: Mark Peterson/Corleve
Tennis is a numbers game.
Simona Halep delivered declarative digits in Doha today.
More: Halep Puts Fed Cup on Par With Slams
The Roland Garros champion streaked through five straight games sealing a 6-2, 6-3 conquest of Lesia Tsurenko to roll into the Qatar Open quarterfinals—and rise up to world No. 2.
When the new WTA rankings are released on Monday, the former No. 1 will surpass Australian Open finalist Petra Kvitova for the second spot while aiming for return to the top.
"It doesn't matter now the ranking," Halep said afterward. "I just play to win every match I play. I step on the court I just want to see how good I can be. If I'm second now I will fight to be number one again. Now I just want to be back on court and enjoy tennis."
Enjoyment comes after major career change. Halep is making her tournament debut working with new coach Thierry Van Cleemput, who formerly coached David Goffin for years.
Halep—who like Goffin, is quick around the court, extremely accurate, can step in to take the ball on the rise and possesses a brilliant backhand down the line—said she's a big Goffin fan. And her admiration for the Belgian played a part in hiring her new coach.
"I met him in Australia for first time," Halep said of her coach. "I talked to him more than normal. In the past we just talked, 'Hello,' and 'How are you?'
"I always admired Goffin because I liked his game and also the fact that he's going into the court a lot. It's just a new collaboration. I don't have much to talk about because it's just the beginning, as I said, so we will see in the future how it works."
ESPN analyst Darren Cahill, who coached Halep to the Roland Garros crown and world No. 1 ranking, stepped down at the end of 2018 to spend more time with his family. Halep said a coach is crucial.
"Any time during your career I think you need a coach, so that's why I got one," Halep said. "It's impossible at this level to go alone to the tournaments and to play tennis. You need support, you need people around, so I am for the coach thing."
Empowered by leading Romania to the Fed Cup semifinal with a pulsating 3-2 victory over defending-champion Czech Republic in Ostrava last weekend, Halep burst out of the blocks with energy and accuracy against an opponent she's dominated.
The 2014 Doha champ charged out to a 3-0 lead then showed tenacity breaking in an eventful 10-minute game for 4-0. Halep extended the lead to 5-0 as Tsurenko could not dent her defense.
The 29-year-old Tsurenko stopped her slide slashing an ace to avoid the bagel then breaking for 2-5.
It was temporary reprieve as Halep hammered a forehand pass down the line breaking to snatch the opening set.
To her credit, Tsurenko kept fighting. The US Open quarterfinalist broke at love for a 2-1 second-set lead. Tsurenko held a break point for double break 61 minutes into the match, but pasted a backhand into middle of net.
That miscue sparked Halep, who held for 2-3. The Romanian regained her range and rhythm roaring through five consecutive games to close in one hour, 19 minutes beating Tsurenko for the sixth time in as many meetings.
Halep will face Auckland champion Julia Goerges for a place in the final four.
The ninth-seeded Goerges fought off American lucky loser Alison Riske, 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-4, cracking 12 aces and committing 11 double faults.
St. Petersburg champion Kiki Bertens beat 2016 champion Carla Suárez Navarro, 2-6, 6-1, 6-1 in 84 minutes.
The fifth-seeded Bertens scored her fifth straight win. She will play Belgian Elise Mertens in the quarterfinals.
Mertens defeated lucky loser Kristyna Pliskova, 6-2, 7-6 (3), after left-handed Kristyna replaced her twin sister, Karolina Pliskova, in the draw. Karolina Pliskova withdrew citing viral illness.