Simona Halep believes that she will be fit in time to play at the season-ending WTA Finals in Singapore after withdrawing from the China Open.
The French Open champion is yet to win a match since the US Open after suffering a first round loss in Wuhan followed by a retirement one week later in Beijing. Halep has been troubled by a back injury in recent weeks, which started during a training session she had with Petra Kvitova. A recent MRI scan revealed that the Romanian has suffered a herniated disk, but the prognosis isn’t as bad as first thought.
“I’m really positive in this moment, even with the injury.” Halep said during an interview with The New York Times. “I feel the pain, but I’m confident that with exercises, recovery and physical therapy, that it’s going to be O.K. I will not stop playing tennis.”
Halep is bidding to finish the season as world No.1 for the second year in a row. In 2018 she has won a trio of titles on the WTA Tour, including her maiden grand slam trophy at Roland Garros. Halep also won titles in Shenzhen and at the Canadian Open.
Looking back at her season so far, the 27-year-old has partly linked her success on the tour to working with a sports psychologist over the past year. She has previously credited her ‘mental strength’ for her triumph over Sloane Stephens at the French Open. In the final, Halep battled back from a set and a break down.
“Over the last year, I have worked with a psychologist. I work hard on the thinking part. At this moment and at this level, everyone is playing very well. So, I try to get mentally stronger. My psychologist told me I have to control my emotions and be more positive.” She explained.
“My problem is that I’m negative — I come from Romania. Romanians are a little bit negative in thinking. Everyone knows that. That’s normal here.”
Should all go according to plan, Halep will return to the tour later this month at the Kremlin Cup in Russia. A Premier event that is currently set to feature six top 20 players. The injury issue may still be ongoing, but the world No.1 is sticking to the positives following her latest medical assessment.
“I just saw another doctor today (October 4th), and he told me that I am free to play.” Said Halep.
“The problem is there, the disk has moved. But it’s not that dangerous. It’s not moving day by day. It’s fine.”
“I have to do my rehab where I’ll work on my core exercises and get massage therapy. No tennis. I’ll wait until the tournament for that.”
Halep last won the Kremlin Cup back in 2013 when she defeated Samantha Stosur in the final. The tournament will get underway the week prior to the WTA Finals on October 15th.
