Simona Halep shines against Kudermetova in Moscow

Simona Halep is through to the quarterfinal of the Kremlin Cup in Moscow with a brilliant performance against Veronika Kudermetova 6-1 7-6(4).

Halep arrived in Moscow looking for matches in order to regain some form and confidence which has been lost since her injury a few months ago. The Romanian player was brilliant in her first match in Moscow and some of that continued today against a very inspired Kudermetova. The Russian entered the match a bit nervous allowing Halep to dominate the rallies.

She hit only 39 % of her first serves and that allowed Halep to attack her immediately with great success. It was a quick set with Halep winning 6-.1 The 2nd set was a much better set of tennis by both players. Kudermetova stabilized her game with increased aggression and power from the baseline. Her serving woes continued as she only hit 35 % of her first serves in the 2nd set.

Halep was not able to find the angles as often as she liked. She did take a 2-0 lead at the start but Kudermetova's aggression caught her off guard and she was not able to hold that lead. Kudermetova tied it up at 3-3 and started playing even better going for winners at every chance. Both settled in nicely and neither player allowed any chance for break until the tiebreak.

In the tiebreak, it was once again good play from both. Halep had the initiative as Kudermetova started showing some nerves once again. The Russian tried mixing it up with some variety in her game but it did not work and Halep had her first match point at 6-4. The win was sealed by a double fault for Kudermetova in a demonstration of what cost her the match. It was her serve.