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Match details
Fixture: Simona Halep vs (8) Ons Jabeur.
Date: 4 May 2022.
Tournament: Madrid Open 2022.
Round: Quarterfinals.
Venue: Madrid, Spain.
Category: WTA 1000.
Surface: Clay.
Prize money: €6,744,165.
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video.
Simona Halep vs Ons Jabeur preview
Simona Halep will continue her quest for a third Madrid Open title against eighth seed Ons Jabeur in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
The former World No. 1 made a thunderous start to the season by winning the title at the Melbourne Summer Set. Halep backed it up with a run to the fourth round of the Australian Open, where she bowed out to Alize Cornet in three sets.
The Romanian then made the semifinals at Dubai and Indian Wells, interspersed with a shock first-round exit at the hands of Caroline Garcia in Doha. A thigh injury prevented the two-time Grand Slam champion from building on those performances, sidelining her for three weeks.
Halep returned to action in Madrid this week with new coach Patrick Mouratoglou in tow. A return to a tournament she has won twice in the past has brought out the best in her.
The World No. 21 rolled past Zhang Shuai, World No. 2 Paula Badosa and 14th seed Coco Gauff without losing a set, taking her tally to 30 wins in the Spanish capital.
World No. 10 Ons Jabeur, too, has had a decent 2022 season so far. After reaching the quarterfinals in Sydney, Dubai and Doha, the Tunisian has come alive on clay.
The former junior French Open champion made it all the way to the final in Charleston before going down to Belinda Bencic in three sets. With the tour moving to Europe, the 27-year-old has made back-to-back quarterfinals in Stuttgart and Madrid.
Jabeur also managed to avenge her Charleston loss to Bencic this week in Madrid, which will boost her confidence ahead of her tough quarterfinal clash with Halep.
Simona Halep vs Ons Jabeur head-to-head
Halep leads Jabeur 2-1 in the head-to-head. The Tunisian won their first-ever encounter in Beijing in 2018 after Halep retired. The Romanian stormed back to win their next two meetings in Dubai in 2020 and 2022.
Simona Halep vs Ons Jabeur odds
Simona Halep vs Ons Jabeur prediction
A master at converting defense into offense, Halep's speed and court coverage are second to none. Jabeur, on the other hand, is known for her array of slices and dropshots with which she disrupts her opponents' rhythm.
Her serve isn't one of her strongest suits, but she managed to produce nine aces against Bencic, winning 83% of her first-serve points. With Halep being one of the best returners in the game, the Tunisian needs to stay solid on serve.
That being said, Halep will come into this match high on confidence. She has been playing brilliant first-strike tennis and if she can maintain that level against Jabeur, she should be able to advance to the Madrid semis once again.
Prediction: Simona Halep to win in two tight sets.
