China Open 2017: Simona Halep Defeats Maria Sharapova in Wednesday Play

Simona Halep produced her best tennis as she defeated Maria Sharapova in straight sets at the 2017 China Open on Wednesday.

The Romanian star prevailed 6-2, 6-2, dominating the third-round encounter.

No. 8 seed Nick Kyrgios beat Mischa Zverev after losing the opening set, winning the battle 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.

Grigor Dimitrov also advanced as he defeated Juan Martin del Potro, 7-6 (8-6), 7-5.

Full tournament results and an updated schedule are available via the China Open website.

The China Open provided the forthcoming matches:

Recap

Halep eliminated Sharapova to claim a berth in the last eight.

The No. 2 seed flew out of the blocks, winning four of the first five games to nullify her opponent's threat.

Halep collected the first set 6-2, and she refused to take her foot off the gas as she punished the superstar.

Sharapova's game was littered with errors as she conceded defeat, unable to catch her opponent when she was in full flow.

The WTA highlighted the winning moment:

Dimitrov was in fine form as he defeated Del Potro in a closely fought match in Beijing.

The wild card advanced with Del Potro struggling to produce his best tennis as the match unfolded.

Del Potro served for the second set, but a number of mistakes allowed Dimitrov to collect a vital break of serve at the definitive moment.

Lintao Zhang/Getty Images

Kyrgios took his time to find his rhythm as he beat Zverev, but he eventually kicked into gear to race to victory.

The Australian maverick lost the opening set but was smooth for the remainder of the tie, winning 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.

Great Britain's Aljaz Bedene was forced to retire as he handed the match to No. 5 seed Roberto Bautista Agut.

The Spaniard was leading 6-0, 4-0 before Bedene called it a day with a knee problem, per BBC Sport.