MARIA SHARAPOVA HAS won the French Open women’s title for a second time after defeating Simona Halep in three sets at Roland Garros.
The Russian beat her 22-year-old Romanian opponent 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4 to claim her fifth Major.
At three hours and two minutes, it was just two minutes shy of the 1996 final between Steffi Graf and Aranxta Sanchez. Sharapova, the seventh seed, won her first Roland Garros title in 2012 and was runner-up last year to Serena Williams.
Halep, the fourth seed, was playing in her maiden final at a Grand Slam and was hoping to become the first Romanian champion since Virginia Ruzici, now her manager, in 1978.
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Saturday’s win took Sharapova, 27, level with Martina Hingis as a five-time Grand Slam title champion.
Maria Sharapova clinches second French Open after thrilling tussle
MARIA SHARAPOVA HAS won the French Open women’s title for a second time after defeating Simona Halep in three sets at Roland Garros.
The Russian beat her 22-year-old Romanian opponent 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4 to claim her fifth Major.
At three hours and two minutes, it was just two minutes shy of the 1996 final between Steffi Graf and Aranxta Sanchez. Sharapova, the seventh seed, won her first Roland Garros title in 2012 and was runner-up last year to Serena Williams.
Halep, the fourth seed, was playing in her maiden final at a Grand Slam and was hoping to become the first Romanian champion since Virginia Ruzici, now her manager, in 1978.
Saturday’s win took Sharapova, 27, level with Martina Hingis as a five-time Grand Slam title champion.
– Additional reporting © AFP, 2014
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