Two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep announces retirement from tennis – less than a year after the star returned from a drugs ban
Two-time Grand SLAM champion Simona Halep announced her retirement of tennis, less than a year after she started a comeback after her doping suspension had passed.
On Tuesday, Halep was hit 6-1, 6-1 by the Italian Lucia Bronzetti in the Transylvania Open in Cluj, the home event of Romania on the WTA Tour.
Prior to the match, Halep had spoken about possible termination of her career in the midst of a constant battle with a knee injury.
Halep is limited to only six singles competitions since they returned to the Tour last March and only won one.
The 33-year-old issued a statement to the Crowd Post match and later confirmed her retirement in a press conference.
“I feel both sorrow and joy – both feelings are trying to me at the moment,” said Halep on the field.
Simona Halep, 33, has announced her retirement for less than a year after returning a ban
Halep won two-time Grand Slam titles and defeated Serena Williams in the Wimbledon final 2019
The Romanian star had claimed the French open title in 2018, after he was a second place twice
“But I make this decision with a peaceful soul. My body can no longer assume so much to get where I was, it is very difficult for me to get there and I know what effort that means. That is exactly why I came to Cluj here to play for you and get feedback from you.
‘Although my performance was not the best, I am very happy that you came. I don’t want to cry, I became world number 1, I won Grand Slams, everything I wanted. Life takes place after tennis and I hope to see you as often as possible.
“I will still come to tennis, but being competitive means much more and at the moment it is no longer possible.”
The former Wimbledon and French Open Champion were released to return last March after the Court of Arbitration for Sport had reduced its doping ban from four years to nine months.
Halep, 33, had tested positively on the blood -strengthening medicine Roxadustat at the US Open in 2022.
An independent tribunal explained a four -year ban that Halep’s statement did not accept that a polluted supplement was the source of the Roxadustat in her system, while a complaint was also maintained for irregularities in her biological passport of her athlete.
The sanction was reduced after appeal to CAS.
Halep confirmed her retirement after her first singles match of 2025, after he had already forced himself to withdraw from the Australian Open and warm-up events for the first Grand Slam of the year due to injuries.
Halep admitted that she was struggling with injuries, which led to her decision to retire
She confirmed her retirement on the Transylvania open, her home tournament on the WTA Tour
Halep was 6-1, 6-1 beaten by Lucia Bronzetti in Italy, left, in the first round on Tuesday
“This is my home, in Romania, this is where I feel best, I have always felt surrounded by a lot of love,” Halep added.
‘There have been many competitions that I won here, there have also been competitions that I have lost, but the good, beautiful memories always remain and your energy has filled my soul.
‘It doesn’t matter where I played, here I felt the best. It felt like I barely breathed on the field today. It is a special emotion. ‘
‘I have many friends who visited me today. My team, people in tennis who supported me, helped me get where I am. From a sporting point of view I am a very fulfilled person, I never even dreamed when I was a child that I would achieve what I have achieved. I worked very hard for this.
‘My family is here too, who has always helped me. My parents are by my side from the first moment, without them I could not be who I am now. I thank them and love them a lot, because they have been by my side in every decision I made.
‘I want to wish the children a lot of ambition, a lot of desire to reach the top, because it is great there. I have played for many years, it is tiring, it is tiring, but it is beautiful and the adrenaline of those moments is not found anywhere else. So, dear children, fighting, working, because everything is ultimately worth it. ‘
The Transylvania Open shared a message with the text ‘Thank you for everything, Simona’ after the announcement of Halep.
Halep, which became the world number one in 2017, had been given a wildcard access to the tournament that 870th was arranged in the world.
Halep returned to the sport last March after the CAS has reduced its doping ban from four years to nine months
The former number one in the world earned more than $ 40 million in her career income, the third most by a female player behind Serena and Venus Williams
She claimed her first Grand Slam title the following year and defeated France in three sets of Sloane Stephens to win the French open.
Halep was crowned Wimbledon champion the following year after a straight victory over Serena Williams.
She was a beaten -up finalist in three further Grand Slam -Final and lost in 2014 and 2017 in the French open showpiece, as well as the Australian Open in 2018.
Halep has made a reported $ 40 million (£ 32 million) in career revenues that have won 24 titles and have placed its third time on the ladies list behind Serena and Venus Williams.