Simona Halep defeated Germany's Andrea Petkovic 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) in the French Open semifinals to become the first Romanian woman to reach a Grand Slam final in 34 years.
Halep, who swept to victory in 90 minutes, will now face four-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova, who reached the French Open final for the third year in succession with a three-set win over Canada's Eugenie Bouchard.
According to Sport24, the last Romanian to reach a Grand Slam final at a major was Halep's manager Virginia Ruzici, who was champion at Roland Garros in 1978 and then finished runner-up two years later to Chris Evert.
Halep said that it is very emotional to win and reach her first Grand Slam final, adding that Petkovic is a great player, but she feels that she was a little bit stronger and she tried her best and did everything she could to win the match.
