Two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep was slapped with a provisional suspension on Friday after the International Tennis Integrity Agency said she failed a drug test administered at the U.S. Open in August.
The organization said the 31-year-old Romanian tested positive for Roxadustat, which is used in some countries to treat anemia in patients with chronic kidney disease.
Halep issued a vehement denial of the allegation, which she called “the biggest shock of my life” on Twitter.
“Today begins the hardest fight of my life: the fight for the truth,” she began her post.
“I will fight until the end to prove that I never knowingly took any prohibited substance and I have faith that sooner or later, the truth will come out.”
— Simona Halep (@Simona_Halep) October 21, 2022
Under terms of the provisional suspension, Halep is banned from competing in any sanctioned tennis event. She previously announced her season was over after having nose surgery.
Halep, who rose to No. 1 in the world five years ago this month, currently is ranked No. 9. She won two tournaments in 2022, bringing her career total to 24.
She lost to Daria Snigur of Ukraine 6-2, 0-6, 6-4 in the first round of the U.S. Open.
–Field Level Media