Halep halts Gauff’s Wimbledon fairy tale
Simona Halep ended Cori Gauff’s fairy-tale run at Wimbledon with a straight-sets victory over the 15-year-old in round four on Monday.
Cori Gauff’s extraordinary Wimbledon adventure came to an end as Simona Halep produced a fine performance in a convincing 6-3 6-3 victory.
After capturing the world of tennis’ attention with a shock defeat of five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams in round one, Gauff comfortably saw off Magdalena Rybarikova before claiming a spot in the last 16 with a wonderful comeback win over Polona Hercog.
But the 15-year-old could not match former world number one Halep on No.1 Court on Monday, as the 2018 French Open champion eased into the quarter-finals.
Gauff looked set to test Halep when she broke back in the second game, but the Romanian moved in front again in game five before winning against serve to seal the first set.
Halep had victory in her sights when 5-2 up in the second set, only for Gauff – who had to be treated for an apparent abdominal problem during the match – to claw back two match points and hold.
But Gauff’s resistance proved futile as Halep converted her next match point – the teenager’s tournament coming to a close when she overhit a forehand.
Halep, who made the quarter-finals at Roland Garros this year, will face Zhang Shuai next up.
A step too far for Coco Gauff – but what a memorable ride it’s been @Simona_Halep ends the 15-year-old’s run to move into the quarter-finals at #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/7IO43ZEO8b
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 8, 2019
STATISTICAL BREAKDOWN
Simona Halep [7] bt Cori Gauff 6-3 6-3
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Halep – 17/14
Gauff – 15/29
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Halep – 2/5
Gauff – 0/1
BREAK POINTS WON
Halep – 5/12
Gauff – 2/6
FIRST SERVE PERCENTAGE
Halep – 57
Gauff – 66
PERCENTAGE OF POINTS WON ON FIRST/SECOND SERVE
Halep – 76/44
Gauff – 53/38
TOTAL POINTS
Halep – 68
Gauff – 51
