World number two and top seeded Simona Halep will face fellow Romanian Irina-Camelia Begu in the second round of the 2020 French Open. This match will be played on Wednesday, September 30 and could begin at around 12.00 pm local time (11.00 am BST). Get the live streaming options of this Simona Halep v Irina-Camelia Begu match along with its preview, head to head, and tips here.
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Simona Halep v Irina-Camelia Begu Head to Head
What a one-sided rivalry this has been. In the seven matches played between these two players, Halep has dropped a grand total of one set, winning all the remaining in straight sets. Four of these matches have come on clay including two at the ITF level in 2007 and 2008 and one as recently as the WTA Prague in August. Halep had won that semifinal 7-6, 6-3.
Also Read:
Halep Shrugs off Slow Start against Tormo
The Romanian world number two was 3-1 down in the first set of her first round match against Sara Sorribes Tormo, and an exchange of breaks later, 4-2 down before she went on a kind of roll most champion players are capable of.
Halep won 10 games on the bounce to complete a 6-4, 6-0 rout of her Spanish opponent to seal her 15th win in a row and cement a place in the second round. She needed all of an hour and 22 minutes and given it was her birthday on the day as well, she called it a “perfect present”.
What was more interesting to see was how Halep responded to the heavier conditions. Most experts have reckoned the heaviness will even things out a tad between the top players like Halep – and Rafael Nadal – and the rest of the field but for most part of this opening match it didn’t seem to be so.
The 2018 French Open champion later admitted she felt the cold and didn’t quite enjoy playing in it but was quick to add how she realised it was going to be the same for both players. Interestingly enough, going into the second round, Halep will have a player against her who would probably have the same problem as her being from the same country and experienced similar weather!
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Begu Shocks Teichmann
Once ranked 22nd in the world, the now-world number 72 Begu was a distant second-favourite going into her first round match against Jil Teichmann. Teichmann is a two-time WTA title winner, having registered both her tournament wins on clay.
Which is why when she raced off to a 4-1 lead in the first set with two breaks of serve under her belt, Teichmann would have been stunned. While she retaliated with two breaks of her own to level the score at 4-4, Begu showed the early show wasn’t a flash in a pan by breaking her Swiss opponent yet again.
And serving for the set, while Begu faced two break-points, she saved them both and then won the set.
The second set swung like pendulum with Begu going 3-0 down, then levelling things off at 3-3, to exchanging another serve break. And then serving to stay in the set at 4-5, Begu dropped her serve to bring parity to the proceedings.
The final set was a tense affair with both players holding on to their serves till 3-3. Things changed rapidly after that as Teichmann was broken in the very next game, Begu held her serve after that and then broke the Swiss world number 54 to complete a three-set shock.
In the end, it became a game of small margins with Begu’s slightly higher first serve percentage (79% to 76%), first serve points won (86% to 84%) and winners (32 to 21) clinching the match for her.
Halep will prove to be a different challenge for Begu, whose best appearance at Roland-Garros was 2016’s fourth round.
Halep v Begu Prediction and Tip
Halep starts off as short as 3/10 to win this in straight sets, which we think should happen despite the weather issues. Begu might give it her best shot but can expect a straight set win here.
Tip: Halep to win AND Over 18.5 games: 6/5 (bet365)
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The French Open 2020 will be played from September 27 to October 11. You can watch & bet on the French Open here. Get your latest premium tennis predictions here.
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