'Feels like I never left' - Halep back on court in Miami

[March 13, 2024]  Reuters) - Simona Halep posted a video on Tuesday of her practicing on the courts of the upcoming Miami Open in what will be her first competitive appearance since winning an appeal over a doping suspension.
 
The Romanian former world number one had her four-year doping ban cut to nine months by the top court for global sport last week, making her eligible to return to competition immediately. 

Tennis - Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 7, 2022 Romania's Simona Halep in action during her semi final match against Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo

"Feels like I never left," Halep wrote in an Instagram story with a winking emoji.

"First day back, thank you @miamiopen."

The 32-year-old Halep, a former Wimbledon and French Open champion, was suspended in October 2022 after she tested positive for roxadustat - a banned drug that stimulates the production of red blood cells - at the U.S. Open that year.

She was also charged with another doping offence last year due to irregularities in her athlete biological passport (ABP), a method designed to monitor different blood parameters over time to reveal potential doping.

Halep, who vigorously denied the charges against her, said that she would most likely have been compelled to retire if the initial four-year ban was maintained.

The Miami Open runs March 17-31.

(Reporting by Rory Carroll; Editing by Toby Davis)

[© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.