The Telegraph Two of the surprise packages of this clay-court season have been British – initially Dan Evans, who made a deep run in Monte Carlo, and more lately Cameron Norrie, who played his second final in three weeks on Sunday. Unfortunately, Norrie wasn’t able to land a maiden ATP title in Lyon. But then he was up against Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has been the dominant force of 2021 outside the slams, and now stands at No 1 in the table of most rankings points gained since January 1. Nevertheless, it had been a hugely creditable effort for Norrie to go this far, especially when you consider that he took out top seed Dominic Thiem on Thursday, and then trounced big-hitting Russian Karen Khachanov in Saturday’s semi-final, losing only two games in the process. Norrie has come to clay late in his career, but it feels like this is developing into his favourite surface. He has one of the heaviest left-handed forehands in the game, loaded with top-spin, and uses it like a miniature version of Rafael Nadal. The result has been a tally of 14 wins and only four losses since he began his European clay-court swing in Barcelona. So while the French Open, which starts next Sunday, has traditionally been a graveyard of British hopes, there are reasons to hope that this year’s event could deliver some more positive results. Norrie’s previous final in Estoril had been a nervewracking affair which he eventually lost on a deciding-set tie-break to the more experienced Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas. Sunday was more straightforward for Tsitsipas, who needed only 69 minutes to hammer home a 6-3, 6-3 victory. It was Tsitsipas’ second title of the clay-court sequence, after he won Monte Carlo in mid-April, taking out Evans in the semi-final along the way. He has become a serious contender to upset the establishment – specifically Nadal and Novak Djokovic – at Roland Garros over the next few weeks. “I felt in good shape from the beginning of the tournament,” said Tsitsipas afterwards. “I am proud of today’s match, I knew it would be a difficult one against Cameron, who has been showing great tennis this week. He has been winning against good players and showing what the left hand can do on clay. “It was not an easy match today. I had to handle the nerves and I am proud of my performance and the way I stayed focused towards my goal.” On this year’s results, meanwhile, both Evans and Norrie stand among the world’s 20 most successful men. Evans is at No 16 and Norrie No 14. The next challenge for them both is to convert that ATP Tour form into a deep run at a major.<doc-sep>Simona Halep is trying to extend her domination. The world no. 1 has reached her second consecutive final, following the victory in the Rogers Cup against Sloane Stephens. The Romanian will compete on Sunday against the Dutch player Kiki Bertens. On her way to the final, Halep defeated opponents like Ashleigh Barty, Lesia Tsurenko and Aryna Sabalenka. Bertens has had a more hard journey. In fact, along the way she has defeated rivals such as Caroline Wozniacki, Anett Kontaveit, Elina Svitolina and Petra Kvitova. Needless to deny that today Halep is the clear favorite for the victory of the tournament. Simona arrives at this final with a technical, physical and mental maturity. If on Sunday, she is rested, she could win her 19th WTA title. On the other hand, for Bertens for the first final on hard; previously she has played only on clay finals. In the head-to-head, Halep leads 3-1. Bertens won her only match against the Romanian in 2010, in the 100k + H event in Torhout. On Sunday, Simona will play the 33rd final of her career. Balance: 18 wins, 14 defeats. This season she has already won three titles (including her first Major at the French Open) in five finals played. On the hard court, she has a score of 10 titles and six losses in the finals. Bertens has won five titles in seven finals. This year she won the Volvo Car Open, in Charleston, against Julia Goerges, and she lost the Mutua Madrid Open against Petra Kvitova. Unbelievable surprises, today Halep can count on several factors: a more suitable surface for her, more experience, greater solidity and a superior technical and mental confidence. Predictions WTA Cincinnati final: Simona Halep 60% Kiki Bertens 40% What do you think? Who will win the Cincinnati final? You can answer this question in the following survey.<doc-sep>“This morning, I decided it’s really tough to get on court again. I had two great weeks. Actually, I didn’t expect those weeks to be so good. I really wanted to play here. That’s why I asked for a wild card. And thank you for the wild card, because it’s really nice to get one when you ask. It’s tough to make this decision, but I have to. I have to rest.”<doc-sep>
(Reuters) - Dutch surprise Kiki Bertens saved a championship point before going on to earn a shock Cincinnati Masters final triumph 2-6 7-6(6) 6-2 over a fatigued world number one Simona Halep on Sunday. Slideshow ( 3 images ) Bertens came back from the brink against Romania’s top seed in an exhausting second set tiebreaker, then won five of the final six games in the decider to lift the sixth and biggest title of her career. A gutsy forehand by Bertens saw her stave off a match point in the tiebreaker before she went on to take control in the third set and eventually served a sixth ace to finish the contest after an absorbing two hours and five minutes. “I cannot find words for this moment. I’m so happy,” a tearful Bertens, whose previous titles had all come on clay, said on court. The victory was the 26-year-old Bertens’ first ever over a world number one and her sixth consecutive triumph over a top-10 opponent and will see her move up to a career-high number 13 in the world rankings. It also ended a nine-match winning streak by Halep, who lost in the Cincinnati final for a third time. “Maybe once I will win one because I love to play here,” said Halep. “I was a little bit tired this week but it was a pleasure to come here and play. “Definitely, I want to congratulate Kiki. You played amazing and you definitely deserve this title.” Despite the loss, Halep will still go into the U.S. Open later this month with the number one ranking. The Romanian dominated the first set, taking the final three games, but Bertens stormed back in the second, taking a 4-1 lead before Halep fought back to level and earned herself the match point in the tiebreak. But a Bertens crosscourt forehand forced an error wide from Halep, tying the breaker at 6-6. After Halep then netted a forehand at 7-6, Bertens won her third straight point to send the match into a decider. After the pair exchanged breaks to start the final set, Bertens claimed a third break of the set to lead 2-1, then blasted forehands beyond the reach of Halep to claim a decisive love break at 4-1.