By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday March 27, 2021
A shoulder injury has forced Simona Halep out of this year’s Miami Open. The Romanian, who had advanced in both singles and doubles, says the right shoulder injury became too much for her to compete. She was due to face Anastisija Sevastova in third-round action today, instead the Latvian moves through to face Ana Konjuh next.
After her second-round victory over Caroline Garcia, Halep told reporters that the injury had actually cropped up in Australia, as she warned that it might be difficult for her to keep playing.
“Actually in Australia I felt it in the second round against Tomljanovic,” she said. “That match I won't forget.
“And then back came back and I had problems with the back, and so when you have an injury some other places from your body, they are not good as well, you try to force something else and that's why you can hurt yourself. When I came here I didn't feel pain anymore. I was really good. But then I practiced some tough sets with other players and I started to feel again. And now it's getting a little bit worse. But I just feel it when I serve, so I'm trying just to do the recovery as much as possible to serve better, because today it was very slow. But, you know, I'm a little bit afraid of this pain of course because it's an injury, so I have to be careful. I will see how it's gonna hold next days.”
Halep competed in doubles in Friday, earning a victory alongside Angelique Kerber against top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka and Elise Mertens. It is not yet clear when or where the World No.3 will compete again.