Simona Halep overcame Elise Mertens in the final of the WTA event in Prague on Sunday to lift her second trophy of season 2020.
Halep, the world No.2 and top seed in Prague, beat Belgium’s Mertens 6-2 7-5 to extend her winning streak to nine matches.
She was not the only title winner on Sunday, with American Jennifer Brady completing an impressive week in Lexington, Kentucky to win her first WTA title.
Brady, who ended Coco Gauff’s run in the semifinals, beat Swiss Jil Teichmann 6-3 6-4 in the final and did not drop a set in five match wins throughout the week.
Unlike Brady, Halep was forced to struggle in her early outings in Prague, a clay-court event that had moved from its original late-April slot in the tennis calendar.
She needed a third-set tiebreak and seven match points to beat Polona Hercog in her opening match, and came within two games of defeat against Barbora Krejcikova in the second round before winning in three sets.
Yet once she had secured her place in the quarterfinals, Halep was a player transformed.
She did not lose a set for the rest of the tournament, improving her head-to-head record over third seed Mertens to 4-1 with her latest victory.
She also beat the Belgian in the fourth round of this year’s Australian Open.
“Definitely it was really tough to get back to the official matches after such a long break,” said Halep, who revealed she would decide on Monday about travelling to the United States.
“And emotions of course. Tough rules. Staying in the room for 10 days is not easy (laughter).
“But I have to take the positive also. I’ve been able to win the tournament, which means a lot, even if it’s a smaller one. It’s been a great week here, and I’m happy to back on tour with a victory.”
Halep had won the previous tournament she played in Dubai, in late February. By early March, the tour had been suspended because of the coronavirus and did not resume for five months.
With her victory in Prague, she improved her 2020 win-loss record to 15-2.
Brady continues brilliant year
Brady has also enjoyed an impressive, if similarly interrupted, season; her victory in Lexington means she has won 17 of 22 matches in 2020.
The world No.49 reached the quarterfinals of the Brisbane International as a qualifier, beating Maria Sharapova and world No.1 Ash Barty along the way.
She also qualified for Dubai and upset Elina Svitolina and Garbine Muguruza en route to the semifinals, where she ran into Halep.
Brady said she worked diligently during tennis’s covid suspension to maintain the momentum she had built.
"Over the past maybe three or four months I've been going non-stop, I've been working and training really hard. Some days it was tough, but throughout the most of it I was pretty motivated and knew that what I was doing was definitely going to help me,” she said.
"It feels great. There's only one winner each week and to walk away with that trophy I think is something that, for my first title in America, I'm really, really happy.”
Focus on Flushing Meadows
Attention now turns to the Western & Southern Open, which has relocated from Cincinnati to Flushing Meadows – the site of the US Open – and begins on Saturday 22 August.
It will be the first combined men’s and women’s event of the sport’s return, marking the resumption of the ATP Tour.
Several players have already started arriving in New York and practising on site ahead of the Cincinnati-US Open tournament double.
— Kevin Anderson (@KAndersonATP) August 16, 2020
Yet one player who won't be making the trip is Kei Nishikori, who announced he had tested positive for COVID-19 and has withdrawn from the Western & Southern Open.
"I am feeling well and have very little symptoms but will obviously be in complete isolation for the safety of everyone," said Nishikori, who did not rule out withdrawing from the US Open.
"Me and my team will get tested again on Friday at which point I will have another update."
On Sunday, world No.8 Belinda Bencic announced she would not travel to the United States.
A semifinalist at Flushing Meadows last year, Bencic is the fifth top-10 woman to withdraw from the US Open.