Athlete of the week

Florin Orban, 11.01.2022, 14:04

Simona Halep has had an auspicious start in 2022. Simona
has reigned supreme in the very first tournament of the year she competed in, the Melbourne
Summer Set 1, an event with 239, 477 USD in prize money. Also, it was the first
success for Romanian sports in the New Year. Reason enough for Radio Romania International
to designate Simona Halep the Athlete of the Week.

In Melbourne, Simona entered the main draw from her
WTA 20th-position. She was 2nd-seeded, while Japan’s Naomi Osaka was
top seeded. In the first round, Halep defeated Australia’s Destanee Aiava, who
came straight from the qualifiers, 6-4, 6-2. Then Halep defeated a Romanian, Elena-Gabriela
Ruse, 6-2, 6-1. In the quarterfinals, Halep had a hard time defeating the 6th-seeded
player in Melbourne, the Swiss Victorija Golubovic, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4. In the
semi-final, Halep had an easy job defeating former WTA number 1, China’s Qinwen
Zheng, 6-3, 6-2. Then the final she played against the 3rd-seeded
tennis player in Melbourne, Russian challenger Veronika Kudermetova followed;
Simona Halep won, 6-2, 6-3. The win in Melbourne earned Halep the 15th
position according to the WTA rankings.

Simona Halep is one of the best players in Romanian
tennis. Born on September 27, 1991, in Constanta, Halep made her debut as a pro
in 2006, when she proved her mettle in her first ITF circuit tournaments. In
2010, Halep was included among the world’s top 100 tennis players. In August
2014, Simona Halep was WTA second-placed, at that time the best
position ever for a Romanian woman tennis player. From October 2017 and all through
to January 2018, Halep was at the top of the WTA rankings. In February 2018,
Simona Halep resumed her position at the top of the table. She stayed there until
early 2019, after the Australian Open. Halep was at the top of
the WTA rankings for 64 weeks. The Romanian’s outstanding record includes the
winning of two Grand Slam tournaments, in Roland Garros, in 2018, and in
Wimbledon, in 2019.

(EN)