The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Tuesday reduced Simona Halep’s four-year ban from four years to nine months, allowing her to return to the WTA Tour immediately.

The two-time Grand Slam champion tested positive for Roxadustat in October 2022, and as a result, she was suspended for four months. The International Tennis Integrity Agency also filed a second allegation against Halep, claiming that the information on her athlete’s biological passport showed that she had used a forbidden substance.

Although the Romanian did not dispute the result, she claimed that a contaminated product was the cause of the positive test. Halep appealed to CAS, which decided on Tuesday that she was not at fault or negligent in any way and that her consumption of Ruxadustrat was not deliberate.

With immediate effect, the 32-year-old Halep is qualified to compete again after her nine-month ban was subsequently extended to October 7, 2022.

Simona Halep in 2024

Currently ranked no.578, the Romanian played her last match on the 29^th of August 2022 when she was overcome by world no.135 Daria Snigur 6-2 0-6 6-4 in the 1^st round of the U.S. Open (draw).

Presently, during this year the Romanian achieved a 39-11 record.