Dear Simona Halep, please be more aggressive.
On Friday, No. 2 seed Simona Halep, who is said to be among the next generations group of dominant players, was knocked out in the 3rd round of the 2014 U.S. Open by qualifier Mariana Lucic-Baroni, 7–6(6), 6–2.
While first set remained close (Halep even broke to open the match), Lucic-Baroni seemed to have an early edge, using her booming groundstrokes to keep Halep off balance, appropriately moving into net to finish points off quickly. By the time Lucic-Baroni won the grueling first set tie-break, Halep had derailed. Lucic-Baroni had simply overwhelmed the 22-year-old Romanian hopeful.
Halep is perhaps the WTA story of the year. She stepped into the spotlight after shooting up 450 rankings in only 4 years (a feat many attribute to her 2010 breast reduction surgery). But her recent recognition has come with her appearances at both the French Open Final and the Wimbledon semi’s. Her season record is 38–12. As one of the announcers of the game put it: “She just wins a lot.”
And yet, the recent early-round loss to Lucic-Baroni wasn’t an upset, really. Simona Halep played her game, glued behind the baseline, hitting loopy, defensive strokes—all which lead to a straight set loss. It was the same type of hitting that lead to her loss against Maria Sharapova at the French Open and Eugenie Bouchard at Wimbledon. These players, who are both much taller than Halep, have built their games on aggression and kayo groundstrokes. But what stung about the loss to Lucic-Baroni—and why it should be an epiphany—is that Lucic-Barioni is irrelevant. She’s 32-years-old and ranked 128 in the world. But she’s still tall, aggressive, and powerful—attributes Halep cannot always handle, especially when her heavyweight opponents are hitting their spots.
In order to become the champion many critics predict she’ll be, the young Romanian must develop a more aggressive, all court game. And there’s no question she’s capable.
A possible first step would be for Halep to mimic a player she has already cited as a major influence: Justine Henin. Both stand at 5'6", and both are characterized by their busy feet. But unlike Halep, Henin was able to generate tremendous power off both wings. With pristine footwork (which Halep has) and a killer forehand (which Halep desperately needs), Henin was able to jump around the court and hit winners from any position.
Another aspect Henin’s game that Halep should observe is the Belgian’s all-court game. Henin was comfortable at the net and thus able to move in and finish points at net. By contrast, Halep is too apprehensive to penetrate the forecourt, and she’s far too content to hang on the baseline until her opponent drops the ball short or commits an unforced error. If Halep worked on her net game, she could be a hall-of-famer. At very least, playing more aggressively will allow her to overcome other rising dynamos like Sloan Stephens, Eugenie Bouchard, and Victoria Azarenka.
The Romanian has the footwork; she has the consistency, and she definitely has a champion’s mindset. Most importantly, she has time and fantastic role-model.
