Simona Halep announces retirement after loss of Transylvania Open – Irvine Times

Halep with delay began his season in his home, The Transylvania Open, in Romania on Tuesday after Wildcard was handed over to him.

But the two-time Grand Slam champion won only two games, as Italy Lucia Bronzeti fed with a 6-1 6-1 win in just 59 minutes.

Speaking in an emotional interview on the court, Halep said: “Tonight I do not know if he is joy or sadness, I think both feelings try me, but I make that decision with his soul.

“I have always been realistic with myself and my body.

“Where I was probably very difficult to get there and I know what it means to get there. That is why today I wanted to come here to Klug to play in front of you and say goodbye.

“Although my performance was not very good, it was still my soul and I am very glad that it came, and I will wonder if I will come back again. But so far this is the last time I played here and I don’t want to cry.

“It’s a beautiful thing. I became the world number one, I won a big helmet, that’s all I wanted. Life goes on, there is life after tennis and I hope to see you again.

“I will come to tennis here as often as I can and of course I will continue to play – but to be competitive, it requires much more and at this point it is no longer.”

Halep, to whom he received a four -year doping ban, which was reduced to nine months due to a contaminated supplement, last competed on the WTA tour in Hong Kong in October.

The 33-year-old also played at an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi in December, but subsequently withdrew from the Australian Open Championship qualification, citing pain in his knee and shoulder.

Earlier this week, Halep admitted that retirement “goes through my mind very often”.

She said to the Romanian website Golazo.ro: “I am old, I have injuries that I cannot recover from. My knee does not recover. “