Former world number one Simona Halep has announced her retirement from professional tennis.

Two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep announced her retirement at the age of 33. The Romanian player, currently ranked 870th in the world, made the announcement following her defeat to Italy's Lucia Bronzetti (1:6, 1:6) in the first round of the WTA-250 tournament in Cluj-Napoca (Romania).

“I thank my parents and family; without them, I wouldn’t be who I am today. I was the world number one, I won Grand Slam tournaments, and that was all I ever wanted. I will continue to play tennis, but being competitive requires much more, and right now that’s no longer possible,” Halep is quoted by Euronews.ro.

It is worth noting that in October 2022, a doping test revealed the banned substance roxadustat in the tennis player’s system. In September 2023, the Romanian received a four-year ban; however, after an appeal, the Court of Arbitration for Sport reduced the penalty to nine months. By March 2024, Simona was set to resume her career, but since then, she has only secured one victory in seven matches.

The Romanian began her career in 2006 and has played 821 matches in singles, winning 580 of them. She has claimed 24 WTA titles, including victories at Roland Garros (2018) and Wimbledon (2019). She was a finalist at the Australian Open in 2018 and a semifinalist at the US Open in 2015.

Halep reached the finals of the WTA Finals in 2014, where she lost to American Serena Williams. From October 2017 to January 2018, she held the top spot in the WTA rankings, achieving the 12th-best record in history (64 weeks). Additionally, Simona ranks third in terms of career prize money earned by women in tennis history, with over $40 million.