Halep beats Keys 7-6 (2), 6-3 to take women’s Rogers Cup
MONTREAL — The large contingent of red-and-yellow-clad Romanian fans at Uniprix Stadium on Sunday got what they came for — a convincing victory from Simona Halep in the final of the US$4.7 million women’s Rogers Cup.
A roar went up and the flags were waving as Halep defeated error-prone American Madison Keys 7-6 (2), 6-3 to claim the title in Canada on her second try, one year after heat stroke forced her to retire from the 2015 Rogers Cup final.
“I like being here in Montreal at lot,” said fifth-seeded Halep, whose world ranking will rise to third with the win. “With all the Romanians, I felt like at home.
“Many people were coming every day. It was an amazing atmosphere down there. The man that announced us on the court said two words in Romanian, so that motivated me a lot. I said that now I have to win.”