PARIS (Reuters) – French Open top seed Simona Halep put in a disciplined performance to tame big-hitting compatriot Irina-Camelia Begu 6-3 6-4 in the second round on Wednesday, extending her winning run to 16 matches.
Halep had won all the previous seven meetings with her 73rd-ranked opponent and jumped to a 3-0 lead on Court Suzanne Lenglen. But Begu got the set back on serve before the 2018 champion broke again in the eighth game before holding serve to win the set.
Begu hit seven more winners than the 2018 champion but also had 15 more unforced errors, and a second break was enough for Halep to secure the second set.
The Wimbledon champion hit her 15th winner on matchpoint to seal the match and will next meet American teenager Amanda Anisimova, who earlier demolished compatriot Bernarda Pera 6-2 6-0.
(Reporting by Sudipto Ganguly in Mumbai; editing by John Stonestreet)
