Dang, I thought I picked Halep.
I have Halep winning in the Tennis Channel's pick-every-match bracket, but I guess I didn't want to lose here and didn't really believe she could beat Serena. I didn't check your picks until after I'd made mine.
In my mind, there are four women left with a chance of winning the tournament--Sharapova, Stosur, Halep and Ivanovic.
Sharapova has the best shot, but I still think it's less than 50 percent. She tends to tense up when the coast is clear, and I still think a power player on a hot day is too good for her.
Stosur could lose at any time to anyone, but the level she showed in reaching the final a few years back was better than anyone not named Serena has showed since then.
Ivanovic has been very consistent this year and can hit anyone, including Sharapova, off the court when she's hot.
Halep doesn't have the pedigree, but in watching her play during the clay season, I was struck for the first time by how talented she is. To me, she's the best combination of power, speed and toughness on clay other than Serena. Look at her scores this year and notice how often she lost the first set, then blitzed her opponent in the next two. And she handed Ivanovic a 6-2, 6-2 beatdown recently.
Sharapova will definitely beat everyone whose name is not on this list. The other three are more mercurial, ranging from least (Ivanovic, the current version) to most (Stosur). Should be interesting.
