Simona Halep will have a chance to earn a spot in the Australian Open main draw after the tournament organizers decided to award her a qualifying wildcard.
The Romanian tennis star, who was doping banned for a year and a half before returning to tennis in March, was limited to just four tournaments in 2024 due to injuries and she is currently ranked at No. 877 in the world – which is far from the ranking she needs to directly get into the main-level tournaments.
With that being said, Halep needed help from the Australian Open officials. And they found a qualifying wildcard for their 2018 runner-up.
Simona Halep and Caroline Wozniacki© YouTube screenshot
Following the announcement, the Romanian issued a short statement.
“Can’t wait to be back,” the 33-year-old wrote on X.
Can’t wait to be back 🙏 https://t.co/5U9JQUgwxW
— Simona Halep (@Simona_Halep) December 18, 2024
Halep set for her 13th Australian Open main draw appearance
In 2010, the Romanian lost in the qualifying first round at Melbourne Park.
But between 2011 and 2022, the two-time Grand Slam champion didn’t miss a single tournament edition at Melbourne Park. Her best result came in 2018 when she made the final before losing to Caroline Wozniacki. The Romanian was also a semifinalist in 2020.
Meanwhile, Halep went 1-4 in her comeback this past season. However, she was battling a knee injury that sidelined her for five months and she lost to Yuan Yue in the Hong Kong Open first round in late October.
After the match, the former world No. 1 publicly acknowledged that she would need some help in order to get into the Australian Open but also some other tournaments.
“It depends on the wildcards, but I just want to work harder because I need a stronger body to perform at this level. I will take it slow. I have to give myself patience and try to get better day by day,” she said after her Hong Kong exit.
In her last Australian Open appearance in 2022, the Romanian lost to Alize Cornet in the round-of-16.
Tennis World USA