Simona Halep has been awarded a wildcard for the WTA 125 tournament in Oeiras, Portugal, where she will get her footing on clay before the Mutua Madrid Open later this month.
The 32-year-old Halep returned to the Hologic WTA Tour last month at the Miami Open, following a reduction of her four-year ban to nine months upon appeal. Despite narrowly losing her first-round match to Paula Badosa, the Romanian wildcard departed the tournament with a positive mindset, grateful to be back on the court. However, not everyone supports the decision to grant wildcards to players returning from doping bans. Fellow former world No.1 and Grand Slam champion Caroline Wozniacki has notably expressed her opposition to this practice.
Ironically, the Mutua Madrid Open, scheduled from April 23 to May 5, announced that both Halep and Wozniacki would receive wildcard entries in the women’s singles draw. Halep, a former French Open champion, has claimed victory at the prestigious clay-court event in Madrid twice before. The tournament is part of the WTA 1000 series and is considered one of the most prominent events outside the four Grand Slams.
According to the latest reports, before heading to Madrid, Halep is set to compete at the Oeiras Ladies Open in Portugal, also as a wildcard entry. The event, a WTA 125 tournament on clay, is scheduled to take place from April 15 to April 21.
The last time Halep competed on clay was at the 2022 French Open, where she lost in the second round to Zheng Qinwen.
UPDATE: Shortly after receiving the wildcard, Halep withdrew from Oeiras due to a knee injury. (source: Tennis World USA)
