Simona Halep qualifies for semifinals of Indian Wells (WTA) tournament

Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, the world's number one, qualified on Wednesday for the semifinals of the WTA tournament in Indian Wells (California), which has total prizes of 7,972,535 dollars, by defeating Croatian Petra Martic 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-3.

Halep (26 years old), an Indian Wells champion, won in two hours and 23 minutes the match with her 27-year-old opponent, who ranks 51st in the WTA.

The score of the professional circuit matches between the two has become 2-1 for Halep, after Croatian Martic won 6-3, 5-7, 7-5 in Copenhagen in 2011, and Halep won 6-4, 6- 2 in 2015 in the first round of Guangzhou. Martic also won a junior victory in 2007, in the second round at Roland Garros, 2-6, 6-4, 6-0.

Halep has secured a 327,965-dollar cheque and 390 WTA points, and in the penultimate match she will encounter the winner of the match opposing Japan's Naomi Osaka and Karolina Pliskova (Czech Republic), players whom Halep defeated this year at the Australian Open.

AGERPRES.