Romania’s Simona Halep wins second Madrid title after exhausting final

Romanian tennis star Simona Halep won her second consecutive title at the Madrid Open, after a long and exhausting final against France’s Kristina Mladenovici. Halep won the three-set encounter 7-5, 6-7, 6-2, after 2 hours and 44 minutes. This is Halep's first title this year and the 15th tournament won in her career. Halep had a good run in Madrid again this year. She had some difficult matches against Italy's Roberta Vinci in the second round (6-3, 2-6, 7-6), and Australian Samantha Stosur in the third round (6-4, 4-6, 6-4). Then, she scored two categorical wins against American Coco Vandeweghe in the quarter finals (6-1, 6-1), and Latvian Anastasija Sevastova in the semifinals (6-2, 6-3). Halep also reached the semifinals in the doubles competition, where she teamed up with compatriot Irina Begu. editor@romania-insider.com