Halep settles into Miami with new coach, new court in win over Hercog

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla.—New court, new coach, new injury and a relatively new opponent: Simona Halep had to deal with a lot on Sunday at the Miami Open. She pulled it together to advance past lucky loser, Polona Hercog, 5-7, 7-6 (1), 6-2, and plays Venus Williams in the round of 16.

"It was not easy at all. I think the level was very, very high," Halep said. "She played unbelievable. If she keeps playing like this, she can be Top 20 easy."

The No. 2 seed was playing for the first time inside of the Hard Rock Stadium, in her first week with new coach Daniel Dobre by her side in her first match against Hercog in 10 years.

"And I lost I know," Halep said. "My brother took care to tell me that."

She sought out medical treatment on her left knee in the first set, and had it strapped more as the match wore on.

"Didn’t affect me much," she said. "I still feel it. I still feel a pain in my knee. Hopefully is not very dangerous."

It didn't look like Halep ever panicked, even when Hercog had her on the the ropes in a nearly three-hour saga, but she said she felt just a 50/50 chance she'd win. The game changer for Halep was taking control of the points earlier, instead of sitting back and hoping Hercog would miss.

Though Hercog is ranked No. 93, she cannot be taken lightly. At an athletic 6'0", one of the Slovenian’s biggest weapons is her serves: she hit six aces to Halep's one. Halep is obviously not a big server, but her level of aggression can feed directly from that first strike. While Halep's first serve percentage stayed steady throughout, she won just 50 percent those first serve points in the first set, as compared to 77 percent in the second set and 73 percent in the third.

"In the end she got tired a little bit and I was stepping forward to be more aggressive," Halep said. "The first two sets were tough because she was serving very, very strong."

Hercog gained entry into the main draw after Lesia Tsurenko withdrew, marking her third lucky loser entry of the season. She was just 3-7 in WTA play in 2019 heading to the Premier Mandatory, and the former world No. 36 is playing mostly in qualifying draws and ITF events.

Halep, meanwhile, is looking to jump start her year, which has seen her appear in just one final, in Doha. Her new Romanian coach may help.

"I need to feel a connection, inspiration," Halep said ahead of the Miami Open. "You always want a coach with the best technique, but after 20 years of playing tennis, you can’t change much technically or tactically. For me, the most important thing is connection."

The world No. 3 had been without a coach since parting ways with Darren Cahill near the end of 2018. Dobre was a coach of hers from just before and during her four-year stint with Cahill.

"We worked together. He helped me home, some tournaments," Halep said. "I think it's the best decision that I have taken this period. I will never compare any coach with Darren. I think with Darren I had the best results in my life. I feel like even if he was speaking English, I understood everything. But it's good that it's a Romanian coach because maybe I can express myself better."

Her attitude towards the change is positive, as is her attitude towards the new Miami Open venue. The main stadium sits inside of the huge NFL Miami Dolphins' home arena, with three sharp-rising temporary bleachers and one side made up of the slow-sloping original stadium's seats. It's a little discombobulating, but once a player zones into the ball in front of them, it can feel like any other court. As a spectator at least, the electric buzz remains missing as the energy can't really take off with so much dead space.

"It's different than the court I played the previous match. But it was a nice atmosphere," Halep said. "It's good that we didn’t have that much sun. I feel it's a big improvement and is much better for us, for the players."

Both Halep and her next opponent, Williams, are taking the change in stride—at least publicly.

"I think every court is a little bit different, but it's not a court that you say, Oh, my God, it's difficult to play on," Williams said earlier this week. "It's just nice and typical."

Williams has yet to lose a set in Miami, taking out No. 14 seed Daria Kasatkina, 6-3, 6-1 on Sunday. She and Halep are locked at 3-3 in career meetings with Halep winning their last match, 6-2, 6-3, at the Australian Open.