World No.2 Simona Halep has been a force to be reckoned with in recent years, but unfortunately she’s still searching for her first ever Grand Slam title. This year’s Australian Open could finally be her time to win one, but standing in her way will be first round opponent Shuai Zhang of China. Can Halep ease through to the next round? Or will Zhang shock the world with an upset? Read on below for more about this match.
[sc:AUS15-250 ]Three Chinese women successfully made it to the 2016 Australian main draw. Shuai Zhang included herself as one of those three with a grueling two-and-a-half hour match to take down veteran Frenchwoman Virginie Razzano in three sets (4-6, 6-2, 8-6). That win allowed Zhang to qualify and ultimately make her fifth-straight appearance in Melbourne.
Zhang, though, won’t have any time to celebrate her achievement as she’s bound to have her hands full in her opening-round bout with second-seeded Simona Halep. This will mark only the second time that both players will be facing one another. Halep won their first meeting three years ago.
Zhang undoubtedly has earned more experience and has improved overall as a professional since her last battle with the Romanian. Her service game, to be specific, has been quite impressive lately, as the World No. 133 has won 62 percent of her first serve points in the previous three matches. Zhang ought to remain loyal to her service game and be hopeful that it could bother Halep enough to make things interesting.
Simona Halep enters this match hoping that her ailing left ankle won’t prevent her from demolishing Shuai Zhang in the opening round.
Not even an injury could be enough to slow down Halep, who is considered as one of the top favorites to win the trophy at Melbourne this year. Halep is no stranger to the hard court and the enormous pressure of playing at the Australian Open. She’s made it into the quarterfinals of this tournament in the previous two years and held a 39-8 record on the hard surface in 2015.
It was undoubtedly Halep’s most impressive one, winning titles at Shenzhen, Dubai and Indian Wells. Those accomplishments basically explain why the 24-year-old Romanian, who has a total of 11 WTA titles thus far, is currently enjoying her highest rank at No. 2.
It’s safe to say that the only reason that Halep could falter against Zhang would be if her injured ankle takes her out of her comfort zone. But other than that, there’s no way that Halep’s losing such a favorable matchup.
