via Reuters
Tennis – Australian Open – Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia, February 16, 2021 Romania’s Simona Halep looks dejected after her quarter final match against Serena Williams of the U.S. REUTERS/Loren Elliott
via Reuters
Tennis – Australian Open – Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia, February 16, 2021 Romania’s Simona Halep looks dejected after her quarter final match against Serena Williams of the U.S. REUTERS/Loren Elliott
World No.3 Simona Halep sent out alarm bells ahead of her title defense at Wimbledon Championships 2021. The Romanian has now withdrawn from Bad Homburg Open 2021, which was her warm-up event prior to Wimbledon.
A calf injury has again come to bite Halep. The player was excited about her return to tennis but her left calf injury has struck again and hence she has withdrawn from the WTA 250 event in Bad Homburg. Halep was the highest-seeded player in the draw and had even received a wildcard to participate.
via Reuters
Simona Halep reacts during her round of 16 match against Czech Republic’s Marketa Vondrousova Pool via REUTERS/Thomas Kienzle
Tough 2021 for Simona Halep
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Calf injuries have hampered Halep’s 2021 season. After the conclusion of the Australian Open 2021, Halep took a lengthy break on the sidelines. She then returned to Miami Open, however, withdrew before her second-round match.
Simona Halep just withdrew from Bad Homburg Open. Calf injury still a problem. She tried though, was supposed to have her media day today. Now big question is of course if she will be able to play Wimbledon.
— Carole Bouchard 💜💛 (@carole_bouchard) June 19, 2021
Then Halep started her clay-court season at Stuttgart, however, suffered a straight-set defeat against Aryna Sabalenka. Later this was followed by a third-round exit at Madrid Open and a retirement in the first round of the Italian Open. With this, her clay season was looking gloomy and Halep announced her withdrawal from French Open 2021 as her calf injury resurfaced.
“It’s with a heavy heart that I announce my withdrawal from Roland Garros this year. Unfortunately, the tear in my left calf muscle needs more time to recover, and the timeline is just too short,” Halep had posted.
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As Halep thought that her calf injury had healed, she was excited about her return on grass. She accepted the wildcard and decided to play the first edition of Bad Homburg Open 2021. The WTA 250 event was one of the few events scheduled before the Wimbledon Championships 2021. But now as Halep withdraws she puts forth serious questions over her title defense at Wimbledon.
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It is to be remembered that Halep had a perfect tournament last time out at Wimbledon 2019. She had thrashed Serena Williams in the finals to claim her second Grand Slam. Now if she retires, Halep will lose 2000 points and venture near the fringes of the WTA top 10 rankings and could even be out of the top 10 rankings after Wimbledon.
Read more: Venus Williams Joins Serena Williams and Olympia For Wimbledon Championships 2021 Training
