Simona Halep sails into Madrid Open final

Simona Halep booked her place in the Madrid Open final with an emphatic 6-2 6-0 victory over Sam Stosur on Friday.

Dominika Cibulkova made sure of her final berth by beating Louisa Chirico earlier in the day and will have been a concerned spectator as Halep wasted little time in seeing off her Australian opponent.

After sharing the opening four games, Halep - sporting strapping on an injured shoulder - took control of the encounter by winning the next four on the bounce to move a set up, wrapping up the opener with a win to love.

Indeed, Halep dropped just four points on her own serve during the first set and there was no stopping her in the second, giving up just three more before the match was up.

The 24-year-old's impressive forehand saw her outclass Stosur as she pulled off a whitewash, sealing her first final appearance of 2016 and her second in Madrid in three years.

Halep led Maria Sharapova only to lose in three sets when she last reached the final at this event, so will be hoping to go one better on Saturday.