Simona Halep has spoken out about her doping case, which severely damaged her career and caused her much suffering in relation to Jannik Sinner’s doping case.
At the US Open in September 2022, Halep tested positive for the prohibited substance roxadustat, and a provisional suspension was imposed. Then, this was maintained and given a four-year extension.
However, her ban was eventually lowered to just nine months following an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Halep was sidelined during the protracted process because she was prohibited from competing on the WTA Tour.
Naturally, that is not at all like the story of Sinner’s doping. After testing positive, he was not suspended and was permitted to compete while the matter was being looked into.
After considering Sinner’s account of how the drug entered his system, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) decided to make a decision. While not all cases are the same, some felt that this presented a challenge when compared to previous ones. After serving her suspension, Halep was unhappy with the way Sinner’s case had been handled.
Now, Halep discussed Sinner’s case when questioned about it in an interview, acknowledging that she endured a great deal of suffering and desiring some uniformity in these decisions because, in her opinion, different processes were at work.
Halep talked about it and said: “I think it is clear that it was judged in a completely different way to my case and I don’t believe that is fair at all. I suffered a lot during my whole process, and I don’t think it was fair that I was not allowed to compete for so long.”
She added: “I believe that all athletes should have the same judgment and be treated the same, regardless of whether they are No. 1 or No. 200. All I want is to leave that stage of my life behind.”
Simona Halep in 2024
At the moment ranked no.578, the Romanian played her last match on the 15th of May when she had to retire when playing against world no.63 Mccartney Kessler in the 1st round and the scoreline was 5-7 3-2
.Until now, during this year Simona owns a compiled 0-2 win-loss record.
Sinner at the U.S. Open, ranking, and results in 2024
Currently ranked no.1, Jannik has managed to achieve a 51-5 match record in 2024. Sinner is competing at the U.S. Open where he beat the world no.140 Mackenzie Mcdonald 2-6 6-2 6-1 6-2, the world no.49 Alex Michelsen 6-4 6-0 6-2 and the world no.87 Christopher O Connell 6-1 6-4 6-2.
Jannik Sinner will fight against the world no.14 Tommy Paul in the 4th round on Monday at 9:00 pm on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The head to head is 2-1 for Sinner.
Sinner clinched 5 titles in 2024 at the Australian Open, Rotterdam, Miami, Halle and Cincinnati.
Jannik won 16 titles in his career: 7 on hard courts, 1 on clay courts, 7 on indoor courts and 1 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Sinner is scheduled to play next in Beijing (China Open). He will start the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 23rd of September.