Prague Open: Simona Halep beats Elise Mertens in final

Simona Halep won her first title since before the coronavirus lockdown at the Prague Open with a straight-set victory over Elise Mertens.

The Romanian world number two beat Belgium’s Mertens 6-2 7-5 for her first title on clay since the 2018 French Open.

Halep, 28, becomes only the second top seed to win the Prague Open, after Karolina Pliskova did so in 2015.

Victory in the Czech capital gives Halep her second title of 2020.

In February, she won the Dubai Tennis Championships – her last tournament before the WTA Tour was suspended because of the global Covid-19 pandemic.

The win is her 21st on the WTA Tour, placing her fifth among current players behind Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Kim Clijsters and Petra Kvitova.