"Karma got her for toxic behavior towards Iga Swiatek"; "Recipe for retirement" - Fans react as Simona Halep withdraws from Australian Open & Auckland

Simona Halep recently confirmed she will not be participating at the 2025 ASB Classic in Auckland and the Australian Open, the year's first Slam. The former World No.1 had received wildcard entries into the main draw of both events, but she pulled out citing knee and shoulder issues.

Unsurprisingly, the announcement drew reactions from tennis fans.

On Thursday, December 26, Simona Halep announced her withdrawal from the 2025 editions of the ASB Classic in Auckland and the Australian Open via an Instagram story.

"Hi guys. I wanted to wish you all happy holidays and provide a little update. After playing in Abu Dhabi, unfortunately I felt pain in my knee and shoulder once again. After discussing with my team at length, we agreed it's sensible to delay the start of my season," Halep wrote.

She aims to get back to fitness before the 2025 Transylvania Open in the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca.

"It's not what I wanted but I would like to thank the tournament organizers in Auckland and Australia for the wild cards and I'm sorry I won't be able to take them this time. I will rest up and intend for my next event to be Cluj, where I can't wait to play in front of the amazing Romanian fans," Halep added.

Halep withdraws from the tournaments in Australia due to the reappearance of her knee/shoulder injuries since her comeback started byu/jovanmilic97 intennis

Fans across Reddit and X (formerly Twitter) had mixed reactions to the news. Some brought up her reaction to Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner's failed doping tests and their subsequent sanctions. Halep had compared Swiatek and Sinner's cases to her own doping controversy, suggesting that she was unfairly treated while the Pole and the Italian were treated far more leniently.

"Thank god. Karma got her for her toxic behavior towards Iga. Hoping for permanent retirement + Iga suing Halep's a**," a fan wrote.

"The resentment is gonna skyrocket now," commented another fan.

"Karma for being a doper. She truly showed her true colors against Sinner, so we are praying for her constant downfall to complete irrelevance," another chimed in.

Other fans seemed concerned for Halep's prospects going forward, considering her recent injury woes.

"Simona has only played 4 matches since her doping suspension was lifted in March, and has a W-L of 1-3. Not sure how much longer she’s really going to keep entering tournaments," wrote one fan.

"I feel bad for her. This looks like a recipe for retirement," suggested another.

"Simona Halep's body is secretly a ticking time bomb of random injuries that love to pop up at the worst possible moments, so no Auckland and AO for her to begin the year. Feel for her fans but mostly for her," yet another fan weighed in.

Halep and Swiatek recently came together to play at the World Tennis League, an annual exhibition team tennis event in Abu Dhabi. They were opponents in one of the women's doubles matches, following which they shared a rather awkward handshake.

Rennae Stubbs, Serena Williams' ex-coach, recently criticized Halep for her controversial remarks about Swiatek.

"Don't be angry at Iga Swiatek, be angry at the system" - Serena Williams' ex-coach's critical advice to Simona Halep

Simona Halep has consistently compared her doping ban to sanctions on Swiatek and Sinner (Source: Getty)

Serena Williams' former coach Rennae Stubbs, who coached the American tennis legend for the 2022 US Open, did not agree with Simona Halep's take on Iga Swiatek's doping row. Stubbs suggested that the Romanian's anger should be directed at the overarching system.

"I am a bit surprised by Halep going hard though, publicly. I don't think that's a good look for her. I think she's just, she's angry obviously, but don't be angry at Iga, be angry at the system. Like she's, you know, there's a lot of players that are being angry at the player, be angry at the system. It's not, it wasn't their fault. They play within the rules. If they didn't, they wouldn't be playing right now," Stubbs said during a recent episode of The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast.

Simona Halep finished the 2024 season at a lowly World No. 877. She was able to play only five WTA Tour-level matches since returning to action at the Miami Open, winning just one.