Halep Refuses To Say Swiatek's Name As She Slams 'Unacceptable' Treatment
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Simona Halep feels she was not treated right in her doping case, and the recent doping case on the WTA Tour made her very angry.
Shortly after the Romanian player was allowed to return to competition, another doping case was made public. Then, it was ATP World No. 1, Jannik Sinner, who tested positive for a banned substance, avoiding any suspension from the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA).
Although Sinner's case was eventually appealed by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), already then the difference in the handling of his case and Halep's case made many angry.
A few months later, another doping case was made public. This time, it was another former World No. 1 player on the WTA Tour, Iga Swiatek, who tested positive for a banned substance.
In the investigation, it was proven that the sleeping pills she was using were contaminated, which is why Swiatek received only a one-month suspension.
That angered Halep, who shared her disappointment in a statement on social media, and now, the Romanian player further spoke about it in an interview with the Telegraph Sport via Zoom call from Dubai.
She admitted that even though she was previously able to be at peace with her situation, she lost her sleep now again, as she feels that she as treated unfairly.
"Big pain, big pain. I felt like they [the ITIA] were unfair to me before, but now it’s even more. I was so, so upset and so sad when I saw the situation. It’s just unacceptable, from my point of view."
"Yeah, I lost my sleep again. I lost it for the two years during the process [of contesting her own doping ban]. Then I got it back. And now, after [what happened], for a few days, yeah, I lost it again. All the negative thinking, negative thoughts, it’s not easy to handle."
Halep, like many athletes, also reads what is said about her, and she answered one of the most common questions or points made as a difference between her doping case and that of Swiatek and Sinner.
The Romanian player wasn't able to identify the source of contamination so fast, but she explained why that was the case.
"I heard some people said that I didn’t discover the contamination faster. But the substance [Keto MCT] that I had was so difficult to find. You find it in China or somewhere else, I don’t know exactly, and it took time to be delivered so they can make the test. It was not my fault because I didn’t want to find [the contaminant] – you know what I mean?"
Halep also didn't find it fair that while she also didn't want her case to be made public to avoid questions from the media and also wanted to be allowed to continue playing, neither of these wishes were fulfilled for her.
"What I believe is not fair, either, is that they announced my case straight away, and I got all the heat from the press, and for these two players they kept it secret, and they just said about the case when everything was done, so it’s very weird."
"And I asked also to lift the provisional suspension to be able to play. I said, ‘If you believe in the end that I am guilty, you take the points back and all the money and everything, but let me play,’ because I wanted to keep the rhythm."
At the same time, it seems that there is a certain anger that Halep feels not only towards the ITIA, but maybe also towards the players that tested positive, as she didn't want to use Swiatek's name during the interview.
"I asked this about two or three times, but now they [Sinner and Swiatek] could play. The woman player – I don’t want to give name, you know about who I’m talking about – she had the three-week suspension, then she played two events, and then she gets again suspension. What is this? I mean, I don’t understand. So I feel it is not fair."
