Simona Halep commented on what has changed in women’s tennis since the departure of Serena Williams.
The Romanian made her return to the WTA Tour in March following the reduction of her four-year doping ban.
She began her comeback at the Miami Open in March, 19 months after the 2022 US Open, where he had her last match before the suspension.
Plenty changed on the tour in Halep’s absence, such as the retirement of Serena Williams and she thinks the style of play has also gone in a slightly different direction.
What does Simona Halep think has changed in the women’s game?
Halep was away from the tour for over 18 months and the final event before her suspension was the US Open two years ago.
That was a poignant tournament and it marked Rafael Nadal’s final appearance at Flushing Meadows, and the last event of Williams’ career.
The 23-time Grand Slam winner revolutionised tennis with her consistent power and aggression. This is evident on her serve, which many regard as the greatest ever seen in women’s tennis.
During her time away from the tour, Halep thinks the women’s game has changed in the sense that more players are able to serve at speeds similar to Williams, and play with more aggression across the board.
“I feel from the TV that they have a lot of power, like service 185-190kmh,” Halep told The Guardian. “Of course, we had in the past players serving like that – Serena [Williams], [Petra] Kvitova.
“But now I feel like most of them are serving very strong. Always, I return very well, even when [Karolina] Pliskova was serving.
“But I’m not like three years ago, four years ago, when I was in the top five. So I don’t know how my body will handle that right now.”
What is Simona Halep’s head-to-head record against Serena Williams?
Like many players, Halep endured a difficult time playing against Williams. The pair played one another 12 times between 2011 and 2021, and Williams emerged victorious on 10 occasions.
The pair produced some entertaining three-set clashes including at the Miami Open in 2015 and Australian Open in 2019.
Williams won both of those contests, but later Halep’s second a final win over Williams came in the 2019 Wimbledon final.
In one of the biggest shocks in tennis history, Halep defeated the American for the loss of just four games to lift the Venus Rosewater dish for the first time.
In their final meeting, Williams produced a vintage performance to beat Halep 6-3, 6-3 at the 2021 Australian Open to reach the semi-finals of a Grand Slam for the final time in her illustrious career.
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