The last Grand Slam tournament of the season will start next week. But the US Open will have to take place without Simona Halep
Doping ban instead of US Open: Simona Halep has to miss the fourth and last Grand Slam tournament of the season. The former world number one has been dropped from the tournament because of the provisional doping ban imposed on her. In her place, Taylor Townsend from the USA will be allowed to move up to the main draw. The US Open begins next Monday and runs until 10 September.
Halep has been provisionally suspended since October 2022 due to a positive doping test. The Romanian’s A and B samples were found to contain the banned substance roxadustat, which is used to treat kidney problems, among other things, during a test at last year’s US Open. This substance increases the number of red blood cells and, similar to EPO, leads to a better oxygen supply.
A final verdict, which was planned for the beginning of August, was postponed indefinitely by an independent court in London.
Halep had won the French Open in 2018, a year later she triumphed at Wimbledon.
