Halep Has Very Serious Achilles Injury

Written by: Bob Larson Tennis on 19th February 2014

Halep Has Very Serious Achilles Injury

epa04085215 Simona Halep of Romania returns the ball to Alize Cornet of France during the second round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis WTA Championships in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 18 February 2014. EPA/ALI HAIDER |

In the space of just two days Simona Halep went from experiencing what she termed one of the best moments of her life to the anguish of not knowing when she will be able to play tennis again.

On Sunday the Romanian won the Qatar Total Open but just 48 hours later she was forced to quit the Dubai Duty Free Championships with serious Achilles tendon problems.

Halep, the world no.9 who was named the WTA’s Most Improved Player last year, was unable to complete her first-round match against France’s Alize Cornet and felt she had no option but to quit as she trailed 6-1, 1-1. The youngest player in the WTA’s top 10 at the age of 22, said:” I think it is bad. I stopped because I wanted to stay safe with my ankle and to recover fast.

“You cannot run, you cannot stop at the balls. After one set, I realized that it is dangerous to continue. So I wanted to stop, because she [Cornet] is a great player and you have to run a lot to beat her.”

Last week, just a few hundred miles along the Arabian Gulf, Halep defeated three top-10 players (Sara Errani, Agnieszka Radwanska and Angelique Kerber) on the way to the biggest title of her career, 900 ranking points and $441,000 in prize money.

Last year she won in Sofia, Moscow, New Haven, Budapest, ‘s-Hertogenbosch and Nuremberg, but Halep is in good company in having to pull out of Dubai after doing so well in Doha. Last year, both Victoria Azarenka (who won the Doha title), and the losing finalist, Serena Williams, withdrew from the event just hours before their matches with a foot and back injuries respectively.

Halep played with the injury from the quarterfinals onwards in Doha but thing intensified in Dubai. “I have an inflammation at my Achilles,” she said. “So when I jump with my serve and when I stop at the rallies, I feel the pain. And today I felt that stronger.”

An optimistic prognosis is that Halep will have recovered in time for the upcoming spring double in the United States, first at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and then the Sony Open in Miami.

And Halep is trying to take the positives out of an enforced break. “I will go home maybe tomorrow, and I will celebrate my Doha win with my family and friends,” she said. “So I will take a few days off.

“I cannot train with the injury. The physio said that I should be OK after ten days’ break, so I will see. I hope to recover fast.”

Topics: 10sballs, Agnieszka Radwanska, Angelique Kerber, BNP Paribas Open, Dubai, Indian Wells, injury, Sara Errani, Serena Williams, Simona Halep, Sports, Tennis, Tennis News, Victoria Azarenka, Wta

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10sBalls_com says:

February 19, 2014 at 10:38 am

Halep Has Very Serious Achilles Injury – http://t.co/OJoSjadDlA #Simona #Halep #tennis #news #achilles #injury
badwinners says:

February 19, 2014 at 10:39 am

RT @10sBalls_com: Halep Has Very Serious Achilles Injury – http://t.co/OJoSjadDlA #Simona #Halep #tennis #news #achilles #injury
the_nessmonster says:

February 19, 2014 at 10:40 am

RT @10sBalls_com: Halep Has Very Serious Achilles Injury – http://t.co/OJoSjadDlA #Simona #Halep #tennis #news #achilles #injury
clare61365360 says:

February 19, 2014 at 12:42 pm

RT @10sBalls_com: Halep Has Very Serious Achilles Injury – http://t.co/OJoSjadDlA #Simona #Halep #tennis #news #achilles #injury