Halep advances as rain wreaks havoc in Cincinnati

Cincinnati - World number one Simona Halep took advantage of a brief break in the weather Thursday to finish off a three-set victory before rain returned to the ATP-WTA Cincinnati Masters.

The top-seeded Romanian won three straight games to close out Ajla Tomljanovic 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 taking less than 10 minutes.

The timing was perfect for French Open champion Halep, as drizzle resumed moments after her contest ended.

She had been clearly frustrated when rain halted the match at 3-3 in the third set on Wednesday night.

The short respite from rain allowed Juan Martin del Potro and South Korea's Chung Hyeon the chance to play six points in the first game of their rain-delayed second-round match before that contest was suspended.

With a grim forecast for the rest of the day, it was looking dicey for matches featuring seven-time winner Roger Federer and 10th seed Novak Djokovic, scheduled for the afternoon and evening.

Results from the ATP and WTA Cincinnati Masters tournament on Thursday (x denotes seeding):

Men

Second round

Juan Martin del Potro (ARG x4) bt Chung Hyeon (KOR) 6-2, 6-3

Third round

Milos Raonic (CAN) bt Denis Shapovalov (CAN) 7-6 (8/6), 6-4

Pablo Carreno-Busta (ESP x13) bt Robin Haase (NED) 6-4, 6-2

Women

Second round

Simona Halep (ROM x1) bt Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3

Amanda Anisimova (USA) bt Petra Martic (CRO) 6-4, 6-3

Third round

Lesia Tsurenko (UKR) bt Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) 7-6 (7/5), 6-2

Madison Keys (USA x13) bt Angelique Kerber (GER x4) 2-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-4

Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) bt Caroline Garcia (FRA x6) 6-4, 3-6, 7-5

Petra Kvitova (CZE x8) bt Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) 6-4, 6-2

Elise Mertens (BEL x15) bt Sloane Stephens (USA x3) 7-6 (10/8), 6-2