Simona Halep, a Romanian who is currently outside the top 10, will return to the court with the 2021 Rogers Cup in Montreal.
The former world number 1 was forced to miss a series of major tournaments, including the French Open, Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics due to injury, but now, he looks fit enough to return to competition.
In a press conference before this season’s Rogers Cup, the 29-year-old revealed that he did not have high hopes for the tournament. He believes that he has not yet reached his best level, therefore, he is skeptical about his performance in the WTA level 1000 tournament.
READ ALSO : Novak Djokovic Refuses To Retain Title In Cincinnati
“I’m still far from my best level. I didn’t expect too much in this tournament,” admitted Halep.
The Romanian tennis player returns to the court after being sidelined for approximately three months. As a result, the former world number 1’s priority is to regain form and momentum ahead of this season’s US Open. Therefore, he will participate in the Rogers Cup as a warm-up tournament.
During the time the two-time Grand Slam title-winning player stayed away from the frenetic world of tennis, he missed a series of major tournaments, including not defending his title at Wimbledon. As a result, the ranking of the Romanian national tennis player has fallen, from world number 3, he has now been knocked out of the top 10 and is now ranked 13th in the world.
However, the Romanian feels that he is enjoying his time away from tennis as if he has nothing but to focus on recovering from his injury.
“I was at home for three months and I enjoyed my time. I feel unburdened, just focused on recovering from the injury. Now, I’m really happy to be here (Montreal),” said Simona Halep.
The world number 13 is excited about appearing in the Rogers Cup. He has won the tournament on two occasions, namely in 2016 (beating Madison Keys) and 2018 (beating Sloane Stephens).
Halep’s fans certainly have high hopes for the player for the remainder of the 2021 season. Will she be able to overcome all odds and win the Rogers Cup title this season?