Simona Halep Doping Saga: WTA Compensates Former No. 1 for ITIA’s Blunder

Simona Halep will now finally be able to make a return to the tour after her competitive journey was hindered by her doping saga. The recent ruling by the top court has reduced the Romanian tennis star’s four-season ban to nine months, which means she will now be allowed to participate in tournaments. But this might not be the only delightful news that the 2-time singles Grand Slam champion has around the corner.

According to the verdict, Simona Halep only had to serve a 9-month suspension, which would’ve ended in August 2023. So, the WTA Tour will now have to compensate for the initial lengthy ban imposed by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), as the currently unranked Romanian will most likely get her ranking back, one way or another.

A Romanian journalist recently asserted that the former number 1 player is all set to get her ranking back as of 7th Aug 2023, which is 58. The user tweeted, “BREAKING | @Simona_Halep seems she got her WTA ranking back, one way or another. It’s the one from August 7th 2023 (#58), which appears on the official Billie Jean King Cup website today (formerly known as Fed Cup), when Romania’s team was announced for the Q tie against Ukraine.”

While providing an update, the user disclosed that the Romanian player might be back in the top 60 spots in next week’s official rankings. The user said, “UPDATE: Zarina Diyas (nominated for Kazakhstan’s team) who doesn’t hold a WTA ranking, but has a Protected one, doesn’t have anything near her name, on the Billie Jean King Cup site. Halep has 58, which strenghtens the idea that we might see her in the official Monday’s rankings.”

As Simona Halep will likely get her ranking back, she will also be back on the court at the biggest East American WTA 1000 event, which will be underway next week.

Simona Halep to mark her wild card participation at a WTA 1000 tournament

Just after the recent verdict, the 2-time singles Grand Slam champion received a wild card invitation to the upcoming Miami Open. On her social media, the WTA superstar revealed that she has accepted the invitation and is quite ‘thrilled’ to play her first competitive game after her doping suspension.

Halep said, “I’m thrilled to let you all know that I will be making my return to the WTA Tour in two weeks at the @miamiopen! Thank you to the tournament for giving me this opportunity and I cannot wait to be back on court and competing. See you all soon!” What do you think of the Romanian tennis star getting back her top 60 rankings on the tour? Let us know in the comments section.

Read More: Real Culprit Behind Simona Halep’s Doping Scandal Unveiled in a Brutally Honest Admission