Spoiler:
- Caroline Garcia's magical run through China has reached new heights.
The World No.15 from France shocked impending World No.1 Simona Halep of Romania, 6-4, 7-6(3), to win the China Open on Sunday. Garcia has won her second consecutive title and eleventh straight match, and will enter the Top 10 at World No.9 on Monday after her heroics.
Garcia also became the first ever player to win the Dongfeng Motors Wuhan Open and the China Open in the same year. Petra Kvitova in 2014 and Garbine Muguruza in 2015 made both finals, but neither could capture both titles (Kvitova lost the Beijing final that year, while Muguruza could not triumph in Wuhan in 2015).
The final was exceptionally close -- Garcia and Halep each finished with 76 points won, their ratios of winners to unforced errors were similar, and they had nearly equal success rates on their service winning percentages.
Garcia, however, got one more break of service than Halep, and that opportunity was the difference in the match. Halep could only break once, and even though she had ten break points in the match, there were only two games in the entire match where she held break point at all.
The match started with an exchange of breaks, as both players tried to find their rhythm under the closed roof on a rainy day in Beijing. From there, the set evolved into a litany of intriguing rallies, usually pitting the powerful forehand of Garcia against Halep’s excellent mobility.
The Frenchwoman found herself in a tricky game when serving at 4-4. After racing to a 40-0 lead, Garcia hit a drop shot which Halep chased down, and Garcia missed a backhand volley to finish the point. The game slid to deuce, but two poor returns by Halep allowed Garcia to escape with a 5-4 lead.
Halep faltered in the next game, at the exact time when it would cost her the most. A clutch of unforced errors by Halep gave Garcia double set point, and when another miscue came off of the Romanian’s forehand, Garcia was a set away from completing the Wuhan-Beijing double.
The combatants tried to improve their consistency in the second set, and there were no break points for either player in the first six games of the set. That would soon dramatically change.
Serving at 3-3, Garcia hit three consecutive unforced errors to open the game, giving Halep a chance to crack the set open and attempt to drag the match into a third set shootout. But Garcia saved all three break points, bringing the game back to deuce.
This ignited a marathon game; over the next 12 points, Halep would attain a break point, and each time Garcia would bring the game back to deuce. After six rounds of that pattern -- bringing Halep's break point total in that game to a mind-boggling nine -- Garcia reached her first game point when Halep failed on a service return. A backhand unforced error by the Romanian suddenly ceded the game.
After letting nine break points go, Halep showed her mettle by holding at love for 4-4, demonstrating that she would not give in. With a minimum of dramatics after the pivotal seventh game of the set, the players advanced to the tiebreak, neither having broken serve in the set.
It was in the tiebreak, though, where Garcia asserted her dominance. A strong volley gave the unseeded Frenchwoman a 3-1 lead, although a passing shot by Halep which Garcia mistakenly let drop inside the sideline put Halep just one point behind, at 4-3.
But two consecutive inexcuseable unforced errors off Halep's backhand gave Garcia a 6-3 lead and two championship points. When a brilliant Garcia forehand square on the sideline was too strong for Halep to put back into the court, Garcia rejoiced after winning the biggest title of her career after one hour and 52 minutes.
The World No.15 from France shocked impending World No.1 Simona Halep of Romania, 6-4, 7-6(3), to win the China Open on Sunday. Garcia has won her second consecutive title and eleventh straight match, and will enter the Top 10 at World No.9 on Monday after her heroics.
Garcia also became the first ever player to win the Dongfeng Motors Wuhan Open and the China Open in the same year. Petra Kvitova in 2014 and Garbine Muguruza in 2015 made both finals, but neither could capture both titles (Kvitova lost the Beijing final that year, while Muguruza could not triumph in Wuhan in 2015).
The final was exceptionally close -- Garcia and Halep each finished with 76 points won, their ratios of winners to unforced errors were similar, and they had nearly equal success rates on their service winning percentages.
Garcia, however, got one more break of service than Halep, and that opportunity was the difference in the match. Halep could only break once, and even though she had ten break points in the match, there were only two games in the entire match where she held break point at all.
The match started with an exchange of breaks, as both players tried to find their rhythm under the closed roof on a rainy day in Beijing. From there, the set evolved into a litany of intriguing rallies, usually pitting the powerful forehand of Garcia against Halep’s excellent mobility.
The Frenchwoman found herself in a tricky game when serving at 4-4. After racing to a 40-0 lead, Garcia hit a drop shot which Halep chased down, and Garcia missed a backhand volley to finish the point. The game slid to deuce, but two poor returns by Halep allowed Garcia to escape with a 5-4 lead.
Halep faltered in the next game, at the exact time when it would cost her the most. A clutch of unforced errors by Halep gave Garcia double set point, and when another miscue came off of the Romanian’s forehand, Garcia was a set away from completing the Wuhan-Beijing double.
The combatants tried to improve their consistency in the second set, and there were no break points for either player in the first six games of the set. That would soon dramatically change.
Serving at 3-3, Garcia hit three consecutive unforced errors to open the game, giving Halep a chance to crack the set open and attempt to drag the match into a third set shootout. But Garcia saved all three break points, bringing the game back to deuce.
This ignited a marathon game; over the next 12 points, Halep would attain a break point, and each time Garcia would bring the game back to deuce. After six rounds of that pattern -- bringing Halep's break point total in that game to a mind-boggling nine -- Garcia reached her first game point when Halep failed on a service return. A backhand unforced error by the Romanian suddenly ceded the game.
After letting nine break points go, Halep showed her mettle by holding at love for 4-4, demonstrating that she would not give in. With a minimum of dramatics after the pivotal seventh game of the set, the players advanced to the tiebreak, neither having broken serve in the set.
It was in the tiebreak, though, where Garcia asserted her dominance. A strong volley gave the unseeded Frenchwoman a 3-1 lead, although a passing shot by Halep which Garcia mistakenly let drop inside the sideline put Halep just one point behind, at 4-3.
But two consecutive inexcuseable unforced errors off Halep's backhand gave Garcia a 6-3 lead and two championship points. When a brilliant Garcia forehand square on the sideline was too strong for Halep to put back into the court, Garcia rejoiced after winning the biggest title of her career after one hour and 52 minutes.
