Simona Halep announces retirement after first-round loss in Cluj

The Romanian had struggled with a knee injury in recent months, having returned to the Tour last March after her four-year ban for failing a drugs test was reduced to nine months on appeal

Zuma/Panoramic

Simon Cambers

February 4, 2025

Former world No 1 Simona Halep is retiring from tennis.

The two-time Grand Slam champion made the announcement after losing her first-round match in Cluj on Tuesday, saying that it was “no longer possible to be competitive” after a serious knee injury.

Simona Halep’s retirement speech, translated by the amazing @WTARomania account. pic.twitter.com/9EHrqDKG84
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) February 4, 2025

“I wanted to come here today in Cluj to play in front of you and say goodbye on the court to tennis,” Halep said, having stayed on court after the end of her match with Lucia Bronzetti.

“Even though my performance wasn’t very good, it was still my soul and I’m very glad that you came. I wonder if I’ll come back again but for now, it’s the last time I’ve played here.

“I don’t want to cry. It’s a beautiful thing. I became world No 1, I won Grand Slams. It’s all I wanted. Life goes on. There is life after tennis and I hope we will see each other again. Of course, I will continue to play tennis but to be competitive requires much more and at this moment, it is no longer possible.”

Knee injury the final straw for Halep

The 33-year-old has been struggling with a knee injury lately, having returned to the Tour last March when a four-year ban for failing a drugs test was reduced to nine months on appeal by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Halep won her first Grand Slam title at the French Open in 2018 and then won Wimbledon the following year. She reached world No 1 in October 2017 and won 24 titles worldwide.

After testing positive for a banned substance in October 2022, Halep was banned for four years but after a lengthy appeal process, the ban was reduced to nine months by CAS on March 5, 2024, who accepted the failed test was the result of contamination, but still held her accountable for what was in her body.

Critical of the length of time her process took and later by what she saw as double standards when it came to the positive tests of Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek, Halep struggled on her return, with a serious knee injury affecting her chances of climbing back up the rankings.