Halep closing in on top spot

Simona Halep took a step nearer to overtaking Garbine Muguruza as world No 1 when the Romanian raced into the semifinals of the China Open on Friday.

The second-ranked Halep eased past Russia's unseeded Daria Kasatkina 6-2, 6-1 in 69 minutes in Beijing and will face Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko in the last four. The French Open champion defeated Romania's Sorana Cirstea 6-4, 6-4.

The Spaniard Muguruza's short stay at the top is under severe threat after she bowed out in the first round in the Chinese capital with a virus.