(Reuters) – Fourth seed Simona Halep had too many tricks up her sleeve for unseeded Spaniard Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor as she glided into the fourth round of the French Open with a 6-3 6-0 win on Saturday.
The wily Romanian, the highest seed in the draw after Serena Williams, Li Na and Agnieszka Radwanska were knocked out early, found perfect angles and defended superbly to counter Torro-Flor’s powerful forehand in Paris.
Halep, who has dropped only 11 games in three straight-set wins, will next meet American 15th seed Sloane Stephens for a place in the quarter-finals.
Stephens beat Russian 22nd seed Ekaterina Makarova 6-3 6-4.
Later on Saturday, eight-times champion Rafa Nadal will be looking to extend his Roland Garros record to 62-1 when he takes on unseeded Argentine Leonardo Mayer in the third round on court Philippe Chatrier.
(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Robert Woodward)
