French Open 2018 Women's Final: Simona Halep vs. Sloane Stephens Predictions

Simona Halep will attempt to break her Grand Slam final duck when she faces Sloane Stephens in the 2018 French Open women's decider on Saturday.

This will be the world No. 1's fourth major final and her second trip to the last stage at Roland-Garros in as many years, having suffered a shock defeat at the hands of then-teenager Jelena Ostapenko in 2017.

Stephens has already added a major to her trophy cabinet after clinching last year's U.S. Open, and she'll hope to double her tally after edging American compatriot Madison Keys 6-4, 6-4 on Thursday.

Halep was more dominant in her semi-final against Garbine Muguruza, winning in straight sets, 6-1, 6-4, to advance in Paris, and she'll now look to beat Stephens for the fifth time in succession, having beaten the Florida native in their two previous meetings on clay.

The stakes are high as Halep seeks to finally end her search for a major title at Roland-Garros, with a defiant Stephens all that stands between her and a maiden Grand Slam.

Halep to Slam Stephens in Straight Sets

As big a talent as Stephens is and in spite of the superb form she's demonstrated over the past nine months, there's a sense her upcoming opponent, Halep, is simply the superior candidate heading into Saturday's showdown.

The Romanian underlined that pedigree with a straight-sets scorching of Spaniard Muguruza—who is herself a daunting figure on clay.

Tennis writer Tumaini Carayol hailed the display as elite, even by her standards:

Stephens has a major under her belt already—she won in her only previous final at the U.S. Open just last year—while this will be Halep's fourth trip to a Grand Slam decider in as many years.

Saturday's match will be Halep's third bite at the Roland-Garros cherry, having lost to Maria Sharapova in Paris in 2014—her maiden major final—before falling at Ostapenko's hands three years later.

At one point, Stephens held a positive winning record over Halep after besting the European in two of their first three clashes, although the world No. 1 has since improved and won their last four encounters in a row.

Christopher Clarey of the New York Times appeared to nod at that feeling of fate around Halep's title charge, having reclaimed the No. 1 status from Caroline Wozniacki in February:

All seven previous meetings between Halep and Stephens have been swift affairs that ended in straight sets regardless of who won, and it's the former who's clinched both their meetings on clay. Most notably, she triumphed 6-4, 6-3 in their only previous French Open duel in the 2014 competition's round of 16.

Historic results suggest Halep is in the ascendancy, and tennis writer Rene Denfeld highlighted her ferocious backhand as one reason not to rule against her come Saturday:

No. 13 seed Madison Keys and 14th seed Daria Kasatkina are the toughest opponents Stephens has faced at Roland-Garros this year, while Halep's two most recent wins, against Angelique Kerber and Muguruza, prove her credentials more.

Stephens' time may come where she enters a clash of this magnitude with almost a right to the throne, but Halep has paid her dues in recent years and is carrying the kind of form one needs to finally win the French Open.