Halep said she will announce on Monday whether she will play at the US Open
Sunday 16 August 2020 16:36, UK
Top seed Simona Halep claimed her second successive title as she comfortably beat Elise Mertens to win the Prague Open on Sunday.
Halep had struggled to shake off the rust throughout the week and came close to a first-round defeat by Polona Hercog before struggling past Barbora Krejcikova and compatriot Irina-Camelia Begu, but she was in the groove against Mertens in the Czech capital.
The Romanian world No 2, playing her first event since winning in Dubai in February, shortly before the coronavirus pandemic forced tennis to shutdown, won 6-2 7-5.
Mertens blazed into a 2-0 lead with a flurry of winners, but Halep responded by reeling off seven successive games to take control.
Halep did not have things all her own way though and was broken back early in the second set as Mertens again went on the attack. A wobbly service game allowed Halep to move a break ahead again in the fifth game, alhough Mertens retaliated again to level the second set at 4-4.
Halep broke to lead 6-5 though and finished it off with a heavy forehand in one hour 33 minutes to earn her 21st career WTA trophy.
"We felt really safe here and all the rules were respected," she told reporters. "It's a bit stressful but the fact that everyone was good these 10 days means everything was done well.
"Second set I was 4-2 up but dead and felt very tired. But today, mentally I was really strong which allowed me to win in two sets."
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