Romanian Simona Halep misses her first tournament of the year

Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, number two in the WTA ranking of the best women's tennis players in the world, withdrew from the tournament in Brisbane, because of a problem with her left Achilles tendon. “I thought I was ready, but I can't play a full match,” Halep said according to WTAtennis.com. The Romanian said she had problems with her Achilles tendon in August and September after which she was fine, but that the problems have reappeared in the last couple of weeks. In her first match at Brisbane, Halep should have played against Belarussian Victoria Azarenka. Halep said she hoped she would be able to play at the Sydney International next week. “I hope I can play in Sidney. It’s not a dangerous injury, just an inflammation.” Defending champion Maria Sharapova also withdrew from the Brisbane tournament due to a sore left forearm. Both Sharapova and Halep are preparing for the Australian Open, which starts Jan. 18. After a good 2015, Romania’s Simona Halep hopes for bigger things in 2016 Diana Mesesan, diana@romania-insider.com