It has been officialized that the US Open will take place in 2020 with the happiness of most top players. However, Simona Halep is not convinced yet about playing the major. While some outlets such as Eurosport confirmed that the Romanian ace won’t compete, the world no.2 left the door open even if she acknowledges that she is not planning to compete outside Europe this year.
Halep’s statement
In an email, Simona confirmed that she is not planning to play in New York. However, she reserves the right to decide and therefore she will wait until the last moment to confirm her presence.
“Given the conditions outlined in the US Open announcement this morning, as of today I do not currently plan to play in NYC. However, as we know, this situation is fluid and that the conditions may change and improve before the entry deadline in mid July. I would like to underline that my decision is not set in stone, I have expressed my thoughts to both Stacey Allaster and Steve Simon and have explained the personal circumstances around them,” she said.
Why Halep is not expected to compete
Of course, it would be a great loss for the US Open not to have Simona at the slam. However, her performance has been rather poor recently at that major while the Romanian no.1 has been exceptional on the dirt. Since the tours will resume the clay-court season, Halep is widely expected to play in Europe with the Roland Garros being the main focus.
In addition, Simona proved to be quite risk-averse during these moments. 4 years ago she refused to compete at the Rio Olympics because of her concerns about the Zika outbreak.
Simona Halep in 2020
Currently the world no.2, Simona played her last match on the 22nd of February when she beat Elena Rybakina 3-6 6-3 7-65 in the final in Dubai to win her 20th career title.
Currently, this season Halep has a 10-2 win-loss record. The Romanian conquered 1 title in Dubai.
