It was about ten years ago that Tania Halep had a dream and she told her daughter that if you are going to do something tennis it should be to get to the final at Wimbledon in front of the Royal Box. In front of the Duchess of Cambridge and the Duchess of Sussex, Simona Halep did better than that, she became the Wimbledon champion. She was beaming when the Venus Rosewater Salver was presented to her.
Miss Halep took a mere 56 minutes to defeat Serena Williams 6-2, 6-2 once again denying the great one from equalling Margaret Court’s all-time record, the one that really matters, of 24 majors.
“It feels good. I wanted this badly,” Miss. Halep said. “When I started the tournament, I talked to the people from the locker room that my dream is to become a member here. So today it's real and I'm really happy.
“I felt my legs that are very soft after I won the last point. I didn't know actually how to react. I just did natural what it came in my inside. It's tough to describe the moment. You just feel, like, light, you feel everything it's beautiful, and you just try to enjoy. It's tough to say.”
Miss Halep said it was only the day of the final that she thought she could win Wimbledon. She never thought she could, and she was being honest. She has worked hard to be able to play on grass. Still she never thought she would be able to win on grass. The girls around her are all so tall and serving with such power. But with the work she picked up the nuances of grass tennis.
“She just played great, so I don't think it's a surprise for anyone to play great against me,” Mis Williams said. “I just was trying different things. Today nothing really helped. But also made way too many errors for a lot of stuff to work.
“She just played great. So, I don't think it's a surprise for anyone to play great against me. I just was trying different things. Today nothing really helped. But also made way too many errors for a lot of stuff to work.”
Miss Halep, who is the tenth active player to win multiple majors, is the first Romanian to win the Wimbledon singles. The original bad boy of tennis reached the final in 1972 and then in 1976.
This is only the second time Simona has defeated Serena, the last was in Singapore in 2014 and the score was 6-0, 6-2. Serena often said that results sticks with her, and this year they went three sets at the Australian Open. Miss Halep was on the attack from the start when she broke serve in the first game. She was so impressive and athletic that even Miss Williams applauded some of the winners played.
“I thought about the match, but I didn't think at all against who I play. I always been intimidated a little bit when I faced Serena. She's an inspiration for everyone and the model for everyone,” she said.
“Today I decided before the match that I'm going to focus on myself and on the final of Grand Slam, not on her. That's why I was able to play my best, to be relaxed, and to be able to be positive and confident against her.”
