Tennis News

MADRID, Spain – Following a couple of semifinal masterclasses, Simona Halep and Dominika Cibulkova go into Saturday’s Mutua Madrid Open final on top of their game. Here are 10 of SAP’s finest facts ahead of their showdown in the Spanish capital.

(6) Simona Halep (ROU #7) vs Dominika Cibulkova (SVK #38)
Head-To-Head: Cibulkova leads, 3-1

1) Cibulkova has historically proven to be a difficult foe for Halep.
Despite sitting over 30 places above Cibulkova in the rankings, Halep has struggled in their previous match-ups. While most of these came prior to Halep establishing herself at the top of the game, the mental scars from their most recent encounter – an emphatic Cibulkova victory in the 2014 Australian Open quarterfinals – could still linger. Comfort comes in the shape of Halep’s sole victory, which came a year previously in Brussels – their only meeting on clay.

2) Both players are Grand Slam finalists.
Cibulkova followed up that victory by reaching the final at Melbourne Park, where her dreams of Grand Slam glory were finally ended by an inspired Li Na. Halep is also no stranger to the business end of majors, losing a thrilling 2014 French Open final to Maria Sharapova.

3) But at Premier Mandatory level, Halep holds a decided edge.
For all her career accomplishments, Cibulkova is through to her very first Premier Mandatory final. Away from the Slams, her most significant final came at the Premier 5 Rogers Cup way back in 2008, where she lost to Dinara Safina. Halep, on the other hand, is appearing in her third Premier Mandatory final; she has a mixed record in the previous two, losing to Sharapova in Madrid two years ago and winning Indian Wells in 2015.

4) Halep and the Magnificent Seven.
Should Halep lift the trophy she will become the seventh active player to hold multiple Premier Mandatory titles. The others are Victoria Azarenka (six), Serena Williams (six), Maria Sharapova (three), Agnieszka Radwanska (two), Caroline Wozniacki (two) and Petra Kvitova (two).

5) World No.38 Cibulkova breaking Premier Mandatory records.
Since the introduction of Premier Mandatory status as part of the 2009 WTA Roadmap, Cibulkova is the first player outside the Top 30 to reach a final at a tournament of this stature. The lowest-ranked finalist (No.29 Svetlana Kuznetsova – 2015) and champion (No.24 Aravane Rezaï – 2010) at a Premier Mandatory event have both came in Madrid.

6) Madrid will have a significant impact on the Road To Singapore leaderboard.
Cibulkova, who has never previously qualified for the WTA Finals, came into Madrid at No.17 on the Road To Singapore leaderboard but – regardless of the result – will leave sitting in a qualifying spot. Halep will also crack the Top 8.

7) Cibulkova the marathon woman.
Despite skittling over semifinal foe Louisa Chirico in under an hour, Cibulkova has still spent plenty of time on court. She was taken to three sets in her previous four matches, taking her total time on court en route to the final to nine hours and 40 minutes. Halep meanwhile has dropped just the one set, spending five hours and 38 minutes on court. 

8) Halep boom or bust in Madrid.
Aside from her two runs to the final, Halep has never won a main draw match in Madrid, falling at the first hurdle in 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2015.

9) Cibulkova will be close to the Top 20 again after this.
The former No.10 is projected to rise from No.38 to No.26 by reaching the final and No.22 by winning the title. In February she was ranked as low as No.66.

10) Halep serving notice.
Halep’s progress has been helped by some particularly potent serving. In five matches she has fired 15 aces and won a mightily impressive 90.2% of her service games – her 2016 average going into the tournament was 70.5%.