Former world No. 1 Simona Halep has announced her retirement from professional tennis, bringing an end to a career that saw her claim two Grand Slam titles and 24 WTA trophies.
The 33-year-old Romanian, who struggled with injuries and a doping suspension in recent years, made her announcement on Tuesday at the Transylvania Open, shortly after suffering a 6-1, 6-1 first-round loss to Italy’s Lucia Bronzetti.
Halep, who delayed the start of her season due to knee and shoulder pain, said she had come to terms with her decision.
“I don’t know if it’s with sadness or joy, I think I feel both, but I make this decision with my soul at peace,” she told the crowd at the BT Arena in Cluj.
Halep, who became the first Romanian woman to reach world No. 1, said her body could no longer sustain the demands of professional tennis.
“My body cannot take as much so as to get back where I once was,” she said. “It is very difficult to get there and I know what it means to get there.”
She expressed her gratitude for being able to play one last time in front of her home crowd.
“That is why I wanted to come to Cluj today to play before you and to say goodbye on the tennis court,” Halep said. “Who knows whether I will return, but at the moment, it is for the last time that I play here.”
Despite the emotional moment, she emphasized her pride in her achievements.
“I don’t want to cry, it is a beautiful thing,” she added. “I became world number one, I won Grand Slams, it is everything I ever wanted. Life moves on, there is life after tennis too.”
Halep first broke into the Grand Slam winner’s circle in 2018, when she triumphed at the French Open, defeating American Sloane Stephens in the final.
A year later, she dominated Serena Williams in the Wimbledon final, securing her second major title in one of the most one-sided championship matches in Wimbledon history.
She also reached three other Grand Slam finals, proving to be one of the most consistent and resilient players of her era.
Halep’s career took a dramatic turn in October 2022, when she was provisionally suspended after testing positive for roxadustat, a banned substance that boosts red blood cell production.
Initially banned for four years, she successfully appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which reduced her suspension to nine months, allowing her to return to competition in 2024.
Despite her short-lived comeback, Halep denied any intentional wrongdoing.
“I am at peace. I know I didn’t do anything wrong in tennis and I am clean, so I wasn’t mentally affected at all,” she said. “But it did take me out of commission.”
Halep admitted that her time away from tennis made her reflect on her life and priorities.
“Being away from the court in this period, I realised how hard the last 15 years were, working every day,” she said in a press conference.
“Perhaps life also means something else. I understood that in this period, and I want to enjoy what I am living now.”
Though she played only four tournaments since her return, she expressed no regrets about her career.
“I have done a lot in tennis. I am at peace, content with what I did, and I feel the time has come to look in another direction.”
Halep leaves behind a storied career marked by her relentless baseline play, tactical intelligence, and resilience.
She was regarded as one of the best defenders and counterpunchers of her generation, earning WTA Player of the Year honors and spending 64 weeks as world No. 1.
While her retirement may have come earlier than expected, Halep remains one of Romania’s greatest sporting icons, inspiring the next generation of players to follow in her footsteps.
Her journey from a promising junior player to a two-time Grand Slam champion cements her place in tennis history.
