2019 Simona Halep tennis season

The 2019 Simona Halep tennis season officially began on 8 January 2019 at the Sydney International. Simona Halep entered the season as the No. 1 ranked player in the world.^[2]

Simona Halep began the 2019 season in Australia as the world No. 1, following an outstanding 2018 season in which she held the top ranking for 48 weeks. Her campaign was highlighted by a big win at Roland Garros, where she defeated Sloane Stephens in a hard-fought three-set final to claim her first Grand Slam title. Additionally, she secured two more titles in Shenzhen and Montreal, earning enough points to finish the year as the world No. 1.

Halep began the season at the Sydney International as the top seed but suffered a straight-sets defeat to Ashleigh Barty, who was ranked No. 15 in the world at the time. This loss extended her losing streak to five matches.^[3]

Seeking her first win since the 2018 Western & Southern Open, Halep's next tournament was the 2019 Australian Open, where she was the No. 1 seed for the second consecutive year. There, she had to defend her finalist points, giving the entire top 11 a chance to claim the top spot (top 10 if Halep played her first match).^[4] After the draw allocation, she discovered that she would face Kaia Kanepi in the first round, setting up a rematch of their 2018 US Open opener, where she had fallen short against the Estonian. Determined to turn the tables, Halep fought hard and secured a three-set victory over Kanepi, marking her first win in nearly five months. In the round of 64, Halep faced the newly crowned WTA champion in Hobart, Sofia Kenin, defeating her in three sets despite initially leading by a set and a break in the second. Throughout the match, she showcased an aggressive game, firing nine aces and hitting 33 winners. In the next rounds, she faced the Williams sisters, starting with Venus in the third round. Halep delivered a dominant performance, losing only five games and securing a straight-sets victory, her first since the Cincinnati Open semifinal. However, the challenge intensified as she faced Serena Williams in the fourth round, a seven-time Australian Open champion. In their 10th career meeting, Serena dominated the first set, winning 6–1 in just 21 minutes. Despite breaking Serena in the opening game, Halep struggled on serve, losing all of her service games in the set. The second set was much more competitive, with Halep finding her rhythm. She eventually broke Serena’s serve at 5–4, leveling the match at one set apiece. The decisive moment came in the sixth game of the third set, where Serena saved three break points to hold serve. In the following game, she broke Halep’s serve, gaining the crucial advantage. Serena maintained her lead for the remainder of the set, ultimately securing the victory.^[5] Following her defeat, Halep's ranking became vulnerable, giving Naomi Osaka, Petra Kvitová, Elina Svitolina, and Karolína Plíšková the opportunity to surpass her. Ultimately, Osaka claimed the world No. 1 ranking after winning the title,^[6] while Halep dropped to No. 3, behind the Australian Open finalists, Osaka and Kvitová.

After securing a victory in the World Group play-offs against Switzerland the previous year, Team Romania returned to the World Group for the first time since 2016. In the quarterfinals, they faced the Czech Republic in Ostrava. Halep was selected to play in the singles rubbers. In her first match against Kateřina Siniaková, she delivered a dominant performance, losing only four games throughout the match. The following day, she faced Karolína Plíšková, the world No. 5, in a highly competitive encounter. After a grueling 2 hours and 37 minutes, Halep emerged victorious, avenging her 2016 Fed Cup quarterfinal loss to Plíšková. With Halep’s two victories and a decisive doubles rubber win by Monica Niculescu and Irina-Camelia Begu, Romania advanced to the Fed Cup semifinals for the first time since 1973.^[7]

Following her successful Fed Cup performance, Simona Halep entered the 2019 Qatar Total Open in Doha as the top seed, receiving a first-round bye. In the second round, she faced Lesia Tsurenko, securing a straight-sets victory. Advancing to the quarterfinals, Halep overcame Julia Görges in two tight sets, both decided by tiebreaks. In the semifinals, she faced Elina Svitolina and, despite trailing in the third set 1–4, she set a comeback, winning the last five games. This victory propelled her into her first final of the season and her first final at this event since 2014. In the championship match, Halep competed against the Belgian Elise Mertens. After taking the first set and having a break in the second set, Halep was unable to maintain her momentum, ultimately falling in three sets. This win marked Mertens' first Premier-level title, and also this tournament marked Halep's first final of the season. Despite the loss, Halep’s run in Doha allowed her to rise one spot in the WTA rankings, reclaiming the world No. 2 position.^[8][9]

Following her runner-up finish at the Qatar Total Open, Simona Halep entered the 2019 Dubai Tennis Championships as the No. 3 seed. After receiving a first-round bye, she faced Canadian wild card Eugenie Bouchard in the second round. In a tightly contested match, Halep secured a 7–6(4), 6–4 victory, marking her 200th main-draw match win on the WTA Tour.^[10] Advancing to the third round, Halep met Tsurenko, whom she had recently defeated in Doha. Replicating her previous success, Halep won in straight sets, 6–3, 7–5, by winning the final 12 points of the match. In the quarterfinals, Halep faced Switzerland's Belinda Bencic. Despite winning the first set, Halep was unable to maintain her momentum due to injuries, ultimately falling 6–4, 4–6, 2–6. Bencic went on to win the tournament, defeating Petra Kvitová in the final. Despite the quarterfinal exit, Halep maintained her World No. 2 ranking, as Kvitová's loss in the final prevented her from surpassing Halep in the standings.^[11]

Halep entered the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells as the No. 2 seed. After receiving a first-round bye, she faced Barbora Strýcová in the second round, securing a straight-sets victory and maintaining her undefeated record against the Czech player.^[12] In the third round, Halep continued her strong performance by defeating Kateryna Kozlova in two sets. However, her tournament run concluded in the fourth round with a three-set loss to 19-year-old Markéta Vondroušová, marking a significant upset in the tournament. Despite this early exit, Halep retained her No. 2 position in the WTA world rankings.^[13]

After the run of Indian Wells, her next tournament was Miami Open. In the second round, she crushed Taylor Townsend in straight sets. In the third round, she defeated Polona Hercog in three tough sets. Halep won against Venus Williams and Qiang Wang, in fourth round and quarterfinal, respectively. She was in contention of regaining the no.1 spot by reaching the finals, after Osaka's defeat in the third round. In the semifinal, she faced Karolína Plíšková, losing in straight sets. After this tournament, she remained no.2.

Her first clay-court event of the season was Fed Cup Semifinal. There, Romanian Fed Cup Team faced France in Rouen. In the singles rubber, Halep defeated Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia. At the doubles rubber, she played instead of Irina-Camelia Begu, withdrawing due to ankle injury, with Monica Niculescu. Anyway, after taking the first set, they lost, giving to France a ticket to the Fed Cup final.

Halep won the 2019 Wimbledon Championships defeating Serena Williams 6–2, 6–2.

Halep's 2019 singles tournament results and points is as follows:

Players are ordered by letter.

Singles: 3 (1 title, 2 runner-ups)

• Simona Halep at the Women's Tennis Association
• Simona Halep at the International Tennis Federation
• Simona Halep at the Billie Jean King Cup (archived)
• Simona Halep at IMDb