Maria Sharapova beats Simona Halep to win Madrid Open

Maria Sharapova came from a set down to beat Simona Halep 1-6 6-2 6-3 and claim her first Madrid Open title this afternoon.

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The world number nine - ranked four places above her Romanian counterpart - slipped to a heavy first-set defeat by a 6-1 margin after a nervy opening by the Russian.

However, Sharapova started better in the second set, breaking Halep's serve to claim the first game en route to a comfortable 6-2 win to level up the match.

The experience of the former world number one soon surfaced and the 27-year-old inflicted three breaks of serve to close out the match 6-3 and clinch the title.