Simona Halep just pulled off the biggest upset of the first two rounds of the 2022 Madrid Open. Halep, a former world No. 1 on the WTA Tour, took down No. 2 seed Paula Badosa in straight sets as she continues to rediscover her top form after an injury-hit 2021.
Badosa’s early exit means Garbine Muguruza is the highest-ranking Spanish player left in the tournament, and the No. 7 seed made a winning return in her first match back in Madrid for three years.
Meanwhile, fellow teenager and reigning US Open champion Emma Raducanu recorded her first victory since splitting with her coach.
Read on below as SBOTOP shares the latest news from the ongoing WTA Tour event taking place in Madrid.
Simona Halep stuns No. 2 seed Badosa in straight sets
After an injury-hit season last year, Simona Halep showed some of the old form that made her a former World No. 1 as she smashed No. 2 seed Paula Badosa in straight sets to reach the Madrid Open round of 16.
“I knew that I have to be for every point focused and to give everything I have, and I did it great today,” the 21st-ranked Halep said. “I’m really pleased with the way I played.”
Halep is a two-time Madrid Open champion – she won back-to-back titles in 2016 and 2017 – and has now reached the last 16 of the tournament for the seventh time in 11 appearances.
The 30-year-old admitted that her injury issues last season – she suffered calf and groin injuries that kept her sidelined for most of the year – had her seriously contemplating retirement.
“The injury last year made me feel that with stopping for four months, I cannot get the rhythm back,” Halep said. “I’m 30, so I thought always at 30 it will be tough. I had this in my mind, I don’t know why. Losing some matches, getting injured again was not easy. Also in Australia, also in Indian Wells.
“So I was doubting myself that my body can still hold for the highest level in tennis,” she continued. “So yeah, probably I was super close to stopping. I didn’t have that energy and that confidence that I can still be on tour and at the highest level.”
But Halep, who is now working with top coach Patrick Mouratoglou, is back fit and is slowly getting back to her best. She recently reached the semi-finals of the Indian Wells Masters, where she lost to eventual champion and current world No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the semi-finals.
And Halep’s Madrid Open 2022 odds of going on to win the tournament are much-improved, especially with two other top-five seeds, No. 3 Aryna Sabalenka and and No. 5 Karolina Pliskova, already eliminated.
Halep will take on 18-year-old American Coco Gauff in the next round. The two recently met in the Indian Wells Masters, which Halep won in straight sets. Halep is 2-0 in her head-to-heads with Gauff.
Muguruza makes winning return in Madrid
Garbine Muguruza made a winning return to the court as she won her opening Madrid Open match against Ajla Tomljanovic 7-6, 6-2.
Muguruza had been missing from the WTA Tour since losing in the opening round at Indian Wells in early March to rest her body, and seems to have done her much good.
“I went out without a lot of expectation, not knowing with lack of matches how it was gonna feel out there, but that’s it,” Muguruza said after the win. “I took the energy from the crowd more this time than other years. In other years I can’t get over sometimes the nerves.
“But this year I was, like, ‘You know what? I’m gonna use the crowd.’ If they cheer up for me, if I put the ball in the locker room, then who cares, right? So yeah, happy with that.”
Muguruza is also playing in the main draw of the Madrid Open for the first time since 2019 and her win was her first since 2018.
The former world No. 1 and 2016 French Open champion will now face Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina in the second round as she looks to regain top form ahead of Roland Garros.
Raducanu wins first match since split with coach
Reigning US Open champion Emma Raducanu made a successful start to the Madrid Open as she defeated Czech Tereza Marticova, 7-6(3), 6-0. It was the 19-year-old’s first victory since parting ways with coach Torben Beltz after only five months of working together.
Raducanu opened up publicly for the first time about her decision to split with Beltz after her victory over Martincova.
“Torben is a great guy. I really enjoyed my time with him on and off the court,” Raducanu said. “He is one of the nicest people I’ve met so obviously it was a tough one to split with someone like that.
“I think Torben has been great for me because when I wanted someone with tour experience, I think for my first six months on the tour, it was very valuable.”
Raducanu will look to make more Madrid Open 2022 highlights when she takes on Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk, who beat the Brit in their most recent meeting in Cluj-Napoca last year in straight sets.
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