WORLD number two Simona Halep has had the perfect lead-up to Roland Garros by claiming her first Internazionali BNL d’Italia with a win over an injured Karolina Pliskova. The Romanian was announced the winner after Pliskova was forced to retire early in the second set with a thigh injury.

In her third Rome final – having lost two in 2017 and 2018 – Halep was able to emerge victorious after dominating the first set 6-0 against a hampered Pliskova, and leading 2-1 in the second. The final lasted just 32 minutes and Halep won 66 per cent of the points, attacking her opponent’s serve with a 70 per cent success rate, including 10 of 12 off the Czech’s second serve. The first set saw Pliskova win just nine points – four on serve – as she was broken three times in a dominant Halep performance.

“I’ve finally won it,” Halep said post-match. “I love this tournament, and I play well here almost every year – besides last year, of course. I started my rise up the rankings at this tournament in 2013, so I’ve always dreamed of having this title. I’m really happy that it happened today. “I played so many matches here over the years, and I love playing on these courts. I just want to smile now. I’m really enjoying it.”

The rivals have played 12 times across their career, with Halep extending the overall head-to-head 8-4, but coming into the match, Pliskova had triumphed in three of the past four matches, form that was not lost on Halep heading into the cost.

“I remember the match we played in Shenzhen last year,” Halep said. “I was leading there and had my chances, but I didn’t take them. “I made some wrong plays there. “We analysed that, and today, everything I had in my head was to be quick, not give her time to hit because she has very powerful shots, and to move her. “I did that, and did it very well. “Today, I felt my game was 100 per cent in my hands.

“She has a strong serve, her forehand and backhand are unbelievable. “She has all the shots, and the courts here are maybe a little faster than other clay courts, so that’s why she won last year and is feeling so good.”

Pliskova said she was disappointed to have to pull out of the match, but knew she was not 100 per cent, which is something she said you have to be in order to stand a chance against the Romanian.

“I hope to be ready for Roland Garros,” Pliskova said post-match. “There’s still a week, so I think that’s plenty of time. “I could possibly play on Sunday, but within a few days, I hope they will help. “I have to see a doctor make sure it’s not too severe of an injury. I think it’s from playing so many tough matches in a row. “Even if they weren’t all three-set matches, they were still on clay, which is quite a fast switch from hard courts. “The sliding and running in the last two matches, I began to feel it against Mertens and it grew with every day. “Had yesterday’s match (semi-final) went three sets, I thought it would have been very difficult for me.”

“Overnight, it started to really not feel good, and so I was thinking about whether I should play at all. “You want to go and try, though it probably didn’t look so good. “Huge credit to Simona, though, because against anyone else, maybe it would have been possible, but she doesn’t give you much for me, so I would have had to be 100 per cent.”

Both players will set their sights on Roland Garros in a week’s time.

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