American press writes that Simona Halep still has one last chance in the hope of participating in Roland Garros 2024.
After not receiving a wild card from the organizers, Simona can only hope for a late invitation to play in the qualifiers.
However, even this scenario is difficult to achieve. The players ahead of her would have to be unable to participate in the qualifiers.
"After injuries forced her to withdraw from Oeiras and Madrid, she is playing at Trophée Clarins this week and has also accepted a wild card to play in Rabat next week, in a potential sign that she will try to play at Roland Garros. But, apart from a late invitation to play in the qualifiers from the French Tennis Federation, her chances have disappeared," wrote TennisUpToDate.
The organizers' announcement of not offering Simona a wild card is not surprising at all. This is because the Roland Garros organizers have a strict protocol regarding the issuance of invitations.
6 invitations are reserved for players from France, while another 2 are for players from Australia and the USA, based on partnerships made by the French Tennis Federation.
Since 2008, the only exception was made in 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic led the organizers to grant wild cards to athletes who would not have been eligible, Eugenie Bouchard and Tsvetana Prinokova. However, there were major travel restrictions at that time.
Another exception was made in 2004 when Martina Navratilova returned to singles tennis after a 10-year break. However, Navratilova's situation was completely different from Simona's.