Halep explains her bitter ending: "It is a relief, I no longer saw the point of this"

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For a few days now, we can say it: Simona Halep is a former professional tennis player. It hurts to accept it, although the reality is that it didn't surprise anyone when she announced her retirement after falling at the WTA 250 in Cluj-Napoca. Her body no longer allows her to perform at her peak, a reason compelling enough to break away and aim towards a different path. If you are a fan of the Romanian, you cannot miss her latest interview with the outlet 30-0, an in-depth and very personal conversation right after her last match. For those who don't have time to read it all, here are some paragraphs that encapsulate some interesting ideas to help you understand this abrupt ending.

Officially retired

"I don't know why everyone is afraid of this moment; I feel fine, although maybe in a few days, everything will be more challenging. For me, it's a liberation; it was very tough. I'm not the kind of person who steps onto the court just to be there. I couldn't even train! Before coming here, the most I could do was to train for an hour a day on clay. Obviously, much more is needed to endure a full match. My knee hurts, my shoulder hurts, I reached emotional exhaustion. I no longer see the point in this; I can't find any reason to bother more; what I can't do is play tennis fighting to be in the top 100. To be at the top, you have to work like a dog... and right now, I can't do it anymore."

The day she was certain

"I realized it when they told me that to fix my knee injury, I needed a cartilage implant; they said the recovery would take a year and a half, but they also couldn't guarantee that I could perform as before. My goal was always to avoid surgery; I wanted to play as much as possible without going under the knife because once you have surgery, nothing is the same anymore. Maybe in a year, I'll miss all this and come back; many athletes are returning now, so you never know; maybe I'll see it differently in time."

Impossible to continue in these conditions

"I respect tennis 100%; in this sport, you have to give everything. I dedicated my life to tennis, and now I can't do it anymore, I don't want to either. I discovered myself during all this time; I know everyone talks about personal growth, but it's very real. It meant a lot to me to see life differently, to have a different perspective, to see what's truly important. After all I've done, I sat at a table with myself and saw that it wasn't worth going through all this anymore."

Satisfied with her career

"I don't take anything negative from this sport; it's a passion, a life goal; it was my destiny. For 30 years, I focused only on tennis; that was it, but I have no regrets. If I were to be reborn, I would do the same. I like having the power to say enough, to accept that the time has come. That's why I regret nothing; I only keep the beautiful moments, the two Grand Slams, being number 1, and many tournaments won. Darren (Cahill) always tells me that I am the best Romanian tennis player in history, so I take that too."

What's next?

"There's the fear of what will happen, but I don't have it; I feel I'll be fine. Together with my family, I've invested in some things in Romania, so for now, I don't feel the need to do anything. I don't want responsibilities, plans, or strict schedules. My goal is to learn to play golf, go to the gym every day, and take care of my body. I also want to be a mother; until now, I've only been a top-level athlete, not a regular person. Now is the time to discover other things."

The chapter of doping

"Until the suspension incident happened to me, I didn't believe in evil; that's when I realized there is a lot of evil in the world. People ask me if I feel the need for revenge, but no, I don't, I feel it. Not even towards those who had bad intentions. I am at peace for not having done anything wrong; I want to remain clean and calm; when you are well inside, life is more beautiful. After all I've been through, I can say that I still have the strength to go on and smile; that means I'm in the right place."

Darren Cahill, the key piece

"All the coaches played a very important role; they were all there no matter what, but to go from there to winning a Grand Slam... that's where Darren (Cahill) helped me a lot. He's a great coach; he believed in me, was very warm with me, understood me perfectly, although he always wanted me to be more positive. He always told me, 'When I started with you, you were already number 2.' That's true, but from number 1 to winning a Grand Slam, there's a long way to go... and from number 1 to winning a Grand Slam, it's an even longer path."

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Halep explica su amargo final: “Es una liberación, ya no le veía sentido a esto”