Tennis News: Simona Halep's setback and Dominic Thiem's new injury

Just when the tennis world thought it might be getting Simona Halep back, she is out again. This time her absence will have nothing to do with a suspension but instead some kind of "medical reason" that will keep her out of any scheduled events for the foreseeable future, including the upcoming Billie Jean King match with Ukraine. The announcement was made by the Romanian Tennis Federation.

Exactly what the medical issue might be is unknown. Halep, after over a year's long absence from tennis due to a suspension for testing positive for the banned substance Roxadustat, made her return to tennis at the Miami Open. She won the first set of her opening match against Paula Badosa, but then lost the last two so ultimately, her return was not successful.

After such a long lay-off, coming back to almost immediately play high-end competitive tennis can be difficult. Halep was likely in a rush to return since she felt as if she was wrongfully suspended, and she is 32 years old so she probably does not have years left to play. Still, one might logically wonder if she came back too fast.

Simona Halep suffers a setback while Dominic Thiem plans to play

As there is no timetable for her return currently, it is unknown if she will be ready for the French Open in May. She won the major in 2018 and is a very good clay-court player. Perhaps she will only be out for a couple of weeks and then will return to her competitive ways by May.

Another player dealing with an injury is Austrian Dominic Thiem. Thiem has been suffering from a wrist problem for almost three years. The former ATP No. 3 hasn't been the same since sustaining the injury and he appears to either have aggravated his wrist or suffered a new injury. Thiem announced this on X/Twitter stating he had returned to practice after the Australian Open but now is having a "strange feeling" and "pain" again.

Still, he does plan to play at the Estoril Open this week. How long he can keep up his conditioning is anyone's guess, however. At least, he is getting support from fellow players such as Nick Kyrgios who tweeted, "You have achieved amazing things in your career and you should be proud! If you come back it’s a bonus for us all."

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