Halep routs Svitolina to reach 1st final at All England Club

Simona Halep advanced to her first career final at Wimbledon, thoroughly dominating No. 8 Elina Svitolina, 6-1, 6-3, to send the only other single-digit seed remaining in the ladies' draw packing.

The seventh-seeded Romanian handled the Ukrainian in all phases. Halep captured 65 percent of her service points - up from 60 percent on the year overall - and a whopping 53.7 percent of her return points (up from 41.8 percent in 2019).

Halep also tallied 26 winners to 16 errors while Svitolina had 10 winners and 16 errors.

Though Halep dropped just four games, the match still took 73 minutes to reach its conclusion, a testament to Svitolina's unwillingness to back down even as the proceedings became increasingly lopsided.

"It was not (as) easy as the score shows, as every game was very long and very deep," Halep said in her post-match court interview. "I fought really hard to win this match. She's an amazing player and (it's) always tough to play against her."

It was the eighth overall meeting between the pair and the first on grass. Halep's victory evens the all-time series at four matches apiece.

The 27-year-old now sets her sights on adding a second crown jewel to her collection, having broken through as a Grand Slam champion at Roland-Garros in 2018.

"It's an amazing feeling and I'm really excited and also nervous because of this," she said. "It's one of the best moments of my life, so I'm trying just to enjoy as much as possible and be happy I could go through to the final."

The final obstacle standing between Halep and more Gland Slam glory is seven-time tournament champ Serena Williams, who beat Barbora Strycova later Thursday. The American holds a commanding 9-1 all-time record against Halep and won their only meeting on grass in 2011 at Wimbledon.