Icon In Her Country, I Have Nothing But Respect For Her': Banned Halep Praised By Former Coach

Darren Cahill once again expressed his support for Simona Halep after her doping ban.

The former world No. 1 is going through difficult times after her suspension from the WTA Tour for four years due to two anti-doping rule violations. Simona Halep has already announced that she will challenge the ruling in the Court of Arbitration for Sport, so she will await a new decision.

In the Advantage Connors podcast wth the American former world No. 1 Jimmy Connors, Darren Cahill commented on the situation of his former protege and showered praise on the 2-time Grand Slam champion

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“An amazing lady with 20 million in Romania who basically idolizes her. She is an icon in the country and feeling and sensing that pressure from that country to have a breakthrough and Grand Slam success, be the No. 1 player in the world, and find a way to put that to one side and accomplish that. I have nothing but respect for her,” claimed Cahill.

“So I enjoyed every piece of those years that we spent together. She backed it up in 2019 by winning the Wimbledon final and playing incredibly well through the semis and final. I think the best match she ever played was against Serena (Williams) in that final,” he added.

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Halep, who will turn 32 on September 27, has been out of competition for over a year since she was defeated in the first round of the 2022 US Open by Daria Snigur.

After a year filled with injuries that affected her ranking, the Romanian reached world No. 6 with a great 2022 season in which she won the Canadian Open and also reached the Wimbledon semifinals, a tournament that did not award points and could have brought her even closer to the top of the WTA rankings.