Halep gets Hungarian fright before reaching last 16

Sept 3, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Simona Halep of Romania hits to Timea Babos of Hungary on day six of the 2016 U.S. Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fifth seed Simona Halep narrowly avoided a third-round upset with a 6-1 2-6 6-4 win over Hungary's Timea Babos on Saturday to keep her U.S. Open title hopes alive.

Halep came into the match having dropped nine games in her opening two matches and looked ready to make speedy work of Babos but she needed two hours and eight minutes on an overcast Arthur Ashe Stadium court to secure her place in the last 16.