After news of Romanian tennis player and former World No. 1 Simona Halep’s four-year suspension for doping, an allegation that she vigorously denies, Serena Williams posted a cryptic message on social media.
8 is a better number.
— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) September 12, 2023
What We Know
Serena won seven Wimbledon titles; her last Wimbledon Championship was in 2016.
In 2019, Serena faced Halep in the Wimbledon finals.
It was a dominant one-sided performance by Halep.
This was Serena’s opportunity to capture an eighth Wimbledon title.
Is This Fair?
Players are drug tested all of the time, and Halep’s issue occurred in 2022.
If there was any question about Halep’s samples after this 2019 match, we would have heard about it years ago.
One More Wrinkle – The Patrick Mouratoglou Connection
What makes Serena’s post even more interesting is the fact that Halep’s coach in 2022 when all of this occurred was Patrick Mouratoglou.
He is Serena’s former coach, and he was her coach for the 2019 Wimbledon loss to Halep.
Mouratoglou was present at Halep’s hearing and issued a statement about how unfairly Halep is being treated.
This was not a one-sentence rubber-stamped statement in support of her.
It is a detailed checklist of issues he has with how her case has been handled.
My statement on @Simona_Halep’s unfair situation : pic.twitter.com/czhsfcfBA2
— Patrick Mouratoglou (@pmouratoglou) September 12, 2023
The most noteworthy part of the statement is when he says:
“I sat through the entire two days of hearing(s) with her and I CANNOT believe that the Tribunal has reached that decision based on the evidence and arguments that I heard.”
Serena is entitled to her opinion, but her thoughts and feelings are the direct opposite of what her coach at that time believes.
Other Coaches Are In Simona’s Corner
Mouratoglou is not the only one of Simona’s coaches who is supporting her.
Former coaches Darren Cahill and Wim Fissette have publicly spoken about her integrity and believe her case is not being treated fairly.
As always, Darren Cahill says it best and I totally share his views. We were suspicious of the way her case was managed, 2nd charge landed at 8 months from 1st, hearing & verdict delays, so the outcome from a tribunal that is at the hands of ITIA couldn’t have been fair. https://t.co/uIHycDI9JI
— Maria (@MariaMihV) September 12, 2023
Wim Fissette on Simona Halep doping case:
“I 100% believe in her not being guilty of taking something she shouldn’t take.. she’s been waiting already a very long time to hear what’s gonna happen to her. She’s been really good for women’s tennis. I hope to see her back very soon”… pic.twitter.com/s55IJpwj5i
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) September 5, 2023
Simona’s next step is to appeal the suspension.
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