Simona Halep off to impressive start at 2017 WTA Finals
By Harry Floyd
Simona Halep kicks off her 2017 WTA Finals run with a win over Caroline Garcia of France. Halep is the top seed and headlines the Red Group.
Simona Halep is appearing in her fourth consecutive WTA Finals.
The world No. 1 is off to a strong start, winning her first match at the year end tournament. She defeats Caroline Garcia of France in straight sets, winning 6-4, 6-2.
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The win over Garcia comes just weeks after Halep dropped their finals meeting at the China Open. Garcia is red hot as of late. Winning both the Wuhan and China Opens, the French tennis star earned her spot in Singapore.
Now, however, Simona Halep avenges her China Open finals loss to Caroline Garcia.
The victory is exactly what the Romanian tennis star needed to start off her week. As a former runner-up at the year end finals, Halep has significantly more experience than several of her opponents.
Along with Garcia, both Elina Svitolina and Jelena Ostapenko make their WTA Finals debuts this week. Ostapenko is the 2017 French Open women’s singles champion.
Look for Simona Halep to remain in control moving forward. Also winning their openers were Garbine Muguruza and Caroline Wozniacki. The Danish tennis star’s victory makes her and Halep early favorites to advance through in the Red Group. Muguruza headlines the White Group this week in Singapore. She defeats Ostapenko in her opening match.
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The WTA Finals in Singapore features several former world No. 1 players. With the likes of Wozniacki, Muguruza, Karolina Pliskova, and Venus Williams vying for the title, anything can happen this week.
In 2017, the WTA Tour has been a mix of young up and comers and impressive veteran play from players such as Williams. While Simona Halep recently earned the world No. 1 ranking, she is competing with a strong field in Singapore. Action continues for the group stage this week. Many of these players have squared off multiple times throughout the year and the finals provides a chance at redemption for some of them. No matter how the group stage unfolds, there is no doubt that all of the contenders will bring their very best to the court. Stay tuned to see how the 2017 WTA Finals unfolds in Singapore.