Halep sails past Mertens at Madrid Open, Del Potro wins on return

Reigning champion Simona Halep edged closer to a third consecutive Madrid Open title by beating Belgium's Elise Mertens in the second round here.

Halep, the winner here in 2016 and 2017, was made to work harder in the second set on Manolo Santana but the world number one's 6-0 6-3 victory yesterday was never in doubt.

Kristyna Pliskova of the Czech Republic will now await Halep in the last 16 as the Romanian continues to prepare for the French Open, where she has twice gone the distance only to finish runner-up.

Halep won the first eight games in a row to lead 6-0 2-0, with her clay-court counter-attacking too strong for the 22-year-old Mertens to handle.

Mertens offered some late resistance as her opponent's concentration wavered, but a double fault confirmed Halep's victory in a brief one hour and 11 minutes.

"I think I played well again," Halep said. "It is the second match of the tournament. I have a great feeling."
- Del Potro makes winning return -
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"For now my wrist is responding well, I'm still having treatment every day. I'm calm, because I've been doing well."