Of all the players I've come across, Simona Halep's one that there's no way she'd intentionally do anything: Mats Wilander on Romanian's doping saga

Simona Halep was recently found to have committed two anti-doping breaches by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) and given a 4-year suspension sentence as a penalty earlier this week.

The two-time Grand Slam champion was provisionally suspended from professional tennis in October 2022 after testing positive for Roxadustat at the US Open. The second offense against her was lodged in May 2023 and linked to discrepancies in her ABP (Athlete Biological Passport), a standard record of substances in an athlete's system.

Back in 2022 (before the ITIA's full decision), Mats Wilander had been shocked by what transpired with the provisional suspension. While he didn't know Halep personally, Wilander raved about Halep's character and stated she is a player who would never intentionally consume any banned substance to gain an unfair advantage.

"Honestly, my heart goes out to Simona Halep. I would never claim that I know her. I have watched her play her a lot of tennis matches over the years. I have interviewed her quite a few of times and I would say that of all the players I've come across she's one of the ones that there's no way that she would intentionally do anything so I think she is out there she said that she's gonna try and clear her name as good as it that goes," Wilander said in an interview with Eurosport, which resurfaced recently.

The seven-time Grand Slam champion argued that players try to be as careful as possible when consuming anything. Still, it is very plausible that they may unknowingly eat or drink something they are not supposed to. As a result, Wilander believes that Halep has committed an honest mistake and referred to her as a "great human being."

"I mean you never know it's possible these days that inadvertently you get something in you that might you might know about or whatever. But again I can't imagine that there is an athlete out there in the professional tennis world that doesn't know what's okay to take or whatever."

"So I'm thinking it's a complete mistake somewhere along the way I cannot imagine. I think Simona Halep is a great athlete. She's a great human being," the 59-year-old continued.

Simona Halep vows to fight her ban, professes innocence in the matter

Simona Halep pictured at the 2022 US Open

Simona Halep has not given up and has clearly stated her intention to take legal action and appeal her 4-year suspension to CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport).

Halep claimed that the positive result in the Roxadustat test can attributed to her nutritional supplements, which she insisted were contaminated by Roxadustat during manufacturing. Furthermore, she is planning to file a lawsuit against the supplement manufacturer as well.

"I am continuing to train and do everything in my power to clear my name of these false allegations and return to the court. I intend to appeal this decision to The Court of Arbitration for Sport and pursue all legal remedies against the supplement company in question," Halep said.

The former World No. 1 reiterated that she has never knowingly taken any nefarious substance. While she was grateful that ITIA had given a decision on her matter, after multiple delays, she was not ready to accept it as is.

"I have never knowingly or intentionally used any prohibited substance. I refused to accept their decision of a four-year ban. While I am grateful to finally have an outcome following numerous unfounded delays and a feeling of living in purgatory for over a year, I am both shocked and disappointed by their decision," she continued.

Simona Halep will be ineligible to play professional tennis until October 2026, if her ban withstands appeals. She last played at the 2022 US Open, where she lost to Daria Snigur of Ukraine in the first round. The Romanian last won a title at the WTA 1000 Canadian Open in 2022.