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The former world number one and 2018 French Open champion called
for the doctor during the third set of her loss to Chinese
teenager Zheng Qinwen on Court Simonne Mathieu.
"It was just a panic attack. It happened," she told reporters
with a smile afterwards.
"I didn't know how to handle it, because I don't have it often.
I don't really know why it happened, because I was leading the
match, I was playing well.
"I lost it. I couldn't focus. After the match, was pretty tough.
But now I'm good. I'm recovered, and I will learn from this
episode. Nothing like dangerous, in my opinion."
The mental health of top women athletes has been brought into
focus over the last year after Naomi Osaka and American gymnast
Simone Biles spoke out about their struggles.
Halep, who lost three Grand Slam finals before winning majors at
Roland Garros and Wimbledon, said last year she sometimes
struggled to handle the pressure of being an elite athlete.
The 30-year-old Romanian said she had been given the all clear
by doctors after her panic attack and was determined to learn
from the experience.
"It's just a tennis match, so I have to (be) a little bit more
relaxed. I probably put pressure on myself too much, because I
really wanted to do well," she added.
"I felt good. I practiced. I worked hard. But just didn't
happen, and probably I got a little bit of panic during that
thinking, overthinking.
"It happened. I have to accept it. It's something normal that
everybody has. I will be better next time, for sure. I don't
have these things so it was new for me."
(Writing by Nick Mulvenney in Sydney, editing by Peter
Rutherford)
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