MADRID, Spain - Two-time champion Simona Halep is back into the quarterfinals at the Mutua Madrid Open for the fifth time in the past six years.
The No.3 seed needed just 44 minutes to see off Slovakia's Viktoria Kuzmova on Court Manolo Santana in Wednesday's third round, 6-0, 6-0.
The win is Halep's first double bagel in nearly three years, since she defeated Anastasija Sevastova on home soil to win the Bucharest Open in 2016, and fifth of her professional career overall.
The match briefly paused early on as rain moved through the Spanish capital, forcing the roof to be closed.
"[The roof] was good for me because the game was faster and I could play my best style. I think everything went very well for me to today. I felt the ball, every single shot," Halep said on-court after the match.
"I don't think it was her best match. Maybe she was nervous before the match a little bit. It's a big tournament and it's not easy to face the top players. I've been in that position. I played my best tennis and I felt good on court."
A quick start for Halep set the tone, as she held at love in the match's opening game, and allowed Kuzmova to win just seven points in the opening set.
The second set proved even more of the same for the former World No.1, as she surrendered just five points - two of which came in the match's final game.
The Slovak struggled behind her serve in the match overall, landing just 38 percent of her first deliveries and winning just six points in five service games overall.
She racked up 18 unforced errors across 12 games, which proved far too many against Halep who struck 14 winners to just four unforced.
In the last eight, Halep will face either Ashleigh Barty or Yulia Putintseva.
