Simona Halep unloaded on the International Tennis Integrity Agency following the Iga Swiatek doping news as the Romanian thinks the organization dealt with her case in a much different and worse way than the Pole’s.
On Thursday, it was announced that the current world No. 2 tested positive for trimetazidine (TMZ) and that it occured just before her Cincinnati semifinal run in August. After being notified about it in September, the five-time Grand Slam champion was handed a provisional ban and that’s why she missed the entire Asian swing.
However, Swiatek successfully appealed and was given the green light to return to action earlier this month at the WTA Finals. Now, she has accepted a one-month ban and will be able to play at the Australian Open.
On the other side, Halep ended up sidelined for 18 months after testing positive for Roxadustat, although it was later confirmed that she was a victim of a contaminated product and that there was no intention to dope. After taking her case to the CAS, the two-time Grand Slam winner had her four-year doping ban reduced to nine months and she was allowed to return to action.
“I stand and ask myself, why is there such a big difference in treatment and judgement? I can’t find and I don’t think there can be a logical answer. It…
