Simona Halep thanks Roger Federer for advice before beating Serena Williams in Wimbledon final

Simona Halep has thanked Roger Federer for his words of encouragement before her final against Serena Williams at Wimbledon, saying he helped her believe that victory was possible.

The Romanian won her first ever title at the All England Club – and second Grand Slam after last year’s French Open – in a brutal performance, taking less than an hour to see off her more illustrious opponent in straight sets.On the eve of the match, Federer was asked to give Halep some advice and told her to go in ‘with a winner’s mentality’ and really believe that she belonged at this level.

And, after seeing off Williams in such emphatic fashion, Halep revealed that she had read Federer’s words and been inspired by them.

‘I read what he said. I thank him. He is very nice. His words made me happy,’ Halep explaind at her post-match press conference.

‘Also I really believe that there is a chance if I listen to him. Because if you listen to him, you get the good things. So I did that.’

Speaking straight after Friday’s win over Rafael Nadal, Federer had shared his advice for Halep: ‘Try to win it, you know. Yeah, I mean, you got to have the winner mentality, don’t you? It’s not like, I’m happy to be in the finals. It’s Serena, I have no chance. Like this you’re going to lose, that’s for sure.

‘You have to have that winner mentality, that I belong here, I’ve earned my way here, I’ve been playing great. You don’t get to a Wimbledon final playing average, you know. Some people might do that, but normally you’re feeling the ball well. She needs to back herself and enjoy it also. But that comes after when you win.

‘It’s full-on concentration, not let the moment be too big. The good thing is she’s won a slam before. She knows how to do it at this point. That’s great.’

Federer has a final of his own to contend with on Sunday, with the 20-time Grand Slam winner looking to add another title to his collection when he takes on world No.1 Novak Djokovic.

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