American player Jessica Pegula has found those responsible for Simona Halep’s retirement at just 32 years old.
Pegula says the culprits are the representatives of ITIA, who run the tennis anti-doping system as they please, giving very harsh suspensions to some athletes like Simona Halep, while doing nothing to others, such as Jannik Sinner.
"I feel they have so much power that they can destroy someone's career, and I think something needs to be done about it because it seems extremely unfair. I don't think any of the players trust this process at the moment. In recent years, it seems that there is no logic in their decisions, so I am not at all surprised that suddenly there is an understanding, because that seems to have been their way of operating," said Pegula, drawing a comparison between the cases of Halep and Sinner.
ITIA suspended Simona Halep for 4 years, while completely exonerating Sinner. Later, the Italian reached an agreement with WADA to accept a 3-month suspension. The case has inflamed the tennis world, as in the past Simona Halep was punished much more severely.
The suspension she served completely destroyed Simona, who was forced to retire in February.
Simona Halep had an impressive career in tennis. She won two Grand Slam titles, Roland Garros 2018 and Wimbledon 2019, played in three other finals (two at Roland Garros and one at the Australian Open). Our athlete was the world No. 1 in the WTA rankings for 64 weeks.
In 2022, Simona Halep tested positive for Roxadustat, after a match played in the first round at the US Open against Daria Snigur on August 29. Since then, a dark period began for Simona. ITIA initially imposed a four-year suspension on the Romanian, reduced to just nine months by TAS.
Halep returned to tennis in March 2024, after a year and a half on the sidelines, provisionally suspended, awaiting the ITIA verdict. Since then, Simona Halep has played six matches and won only one, against Arina Rodionova in Hong Kong in October 2024.