Simona Halep narrowly averted an early exit at the Australian Open on Wednesday night, coming back from 5-2 down in the third set to beat No. 72 Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia 4-6, 6-4, 7-5.
The second-seeded Halep hadn’t lost to a player ranked as low as Tomljanovic since her second-round defeat to No. 116 Taylor Townsend at the 2019 U.S. Open.
Halep struggled to find her range with her groundstrokes, committing 37 unforced errors. The two players combined for 15 service breaks.
“I expected she’s going to play hard and very strong,” Halep said. “I expected it would be a difficult match, but it was more than I thought. I’m really happy I can smile now.”
Halep, a two-time major champion, is closing in on her 100th Grand Slam main draw win. With the victory over Tomljanovic, she’s now 98-38.
