Halep into quarterfinal of the us open 2016

Simona Halep had to work hard to beat Carla Suarez Navarro, 6-2, 7-5, to advance to the US Open quarterfinals for the second consecutive year.

While the score might not indicate a tough match, this was a blue-collar effort for both players. The one-hour and 38-minute tussle was dominated by lengthy baseline rallies, heavy ground strokes and lots of scampering around the court.

“I had to run a lot and I tried to be more aggressive today”, said No. 5 Halep, who made the semifinals last year in the Romanian’s her best showing at the Open in seven tries.

The duo were no strangers, having split 10 career matches, with the gritty Spaniard winning both of their previous Grand Slam matchups. Seven of the 10 matches had gone to three sets.

So it was a bit unexpected when Halep sprinted out to a 4-0 opening-set lead, breaking the No. 11 seed in the first and third games. The third game was a marathon, stretching to six deuces before Halep won the game on her fifth break point. Suarez Navarro, bidding to equal her best Open showing of the final eight in 2013, fought back, making every point a battle onto itself. Halep finally claimed the first set in 46 minutes on a backhand error.

How closely matched the duo were was reflected in the first-set statistics. Halep had 10 winners and nine unforced errors, the Spaniard had 10 winners and 10 errors.

The final set was similar in style of play but also had added tension in the final games, with Navarro rallying from 3-5 down. At 5-5, however, she dropped her serve when Halep cracked a forehand winning return. When Navarro dumped a backhand volley into the net on match point, Halep emphatically pumped her fist and blew kisses to the crowd.

“This was very special today to win, “said Halep. “I want to enjoy today.”