Simona Halep halts Ashleigh Barty’s winning run to reach Madrid semi-final
- Romanian wins 7-5, 7-5 to set up Belinda Bencic tie
- Bencic beats Naomi Osaka in three sets in Madrid Open
Simona Halep is playing well enough to win a third title here, reaching her fourth semi-final in nine visits with a naggingly precise serve that drained even the combative spirit of Ashleigh Barty, whose run of 11 wins on the spin ended on Court Manolo Santana.
The Romanian now has an equally formidable task to get past the tenacious Swiss Belinda Bencic on Friday, and she has the added incentive of reclaiming her world No 1 place from Naomi Osaka – who lost in three sets to Bencic – if she wins the final on Saturday.