TWO massive semi-finals played out at the Italian Open fantasy tournament, seeing Simona Halep and Petra Martic head through to the final after spectacular wins.

Martic is through to her fourth WTA final after defeating tough American qualifier, Sloane Stephens, in straight sets 6-3 6-3. Martic was impressive from the get-go, using her powerful serve and instinctive movement to batter Stephens, collecting five aces in the first set and sending the ball back to Sloane with ease. While Sloane started the second set a fraction better, Martic had not just the momentum but also the belief on her side, running down the American to head into the final.

Halep had a tougher competitor in Ash Barty but reigned supreme after two hours of play, proving a threatening opposition with her ability to bounce back from a slow start to win 5-7 6-1 7-6. While Barty had a fast start, Halep used her tennis nous to outplay the Australian and while she went down in the first set tiebreaker, had all the momentum on her side heading into the second. A massive second set saw Halep down the world number one, and while Barty worked her way back into the match it was not to be, with Halep winning the third set tiebreaker to snatch the victory from under Barty’s nose.

It will be an interesting Italian Open final, with the likes of Halep and Martic highly different in not only their winning experience – Halep with 20 titles and Martic with just the one – but also their game style and ability to bounce back. Neither player has been at their most consistent on clay this season, meaning the results could realistically go either way.

SEMI-FINALS RESULTS:

[3] Simona Halep (ROU) defeated [1] Ash Barty (AUS) 5-7 6-1 7-6
Petra Martic (CRO) defeated [Q] Sloane Stephens (USA) 6-3 6-3