18-time Grand Slam champion Martina Navratilova has advised World No. 1 Simona Halep to step out of her comfort zone against US Open champion Sloane Stephens to claim her maiden French Open and Grand Slam title on Saturday.
For Halep, who lost her first three Major finals, including last year’s final in Paris to Jelena Ostapenko, when she led the Latvian by a set and 3-0, the only way forward is to become the aggressor against Stephens. She must play to win rather than to lose because a defensive mindset will once again, let her down, while a positive attitude will definitely lead her to a first ever Roland Garros title.
Navratilova wrote in his column for the WTA: “I would imagine Simona Halep’s scar tissue is pretty thick after losing her first three Grand Slam finals, including two in Paris. But she mustn’t play it safe in the French Open final against Sloane Stephens.”
“If Halep is to break through and win her first major, she needs to step out of her comfort zone and take some chances. She’s going to be fired up and she’s going to want it so much, which is a good thing as long as you can control it. So hopefully Halep won’t want it so much that she can’t actually play her best tennis.”
“For me, the mistake Halep made in last year’s French Open final against Jelena Ostapenko was that she played too defensively, that she played not to lose. But champions learn from their mistakes so I don’t think she’s going to make the same mistake twice in the same situation, which is why I expect her to play aggressively against Stephens. Halep knows she needs to go after it. She can’t play not to lose, she has to play to win. I think that’s the lesson she learned last year. Even if she doesn’t want to go for it, she will make herself go for it.”
