Simona Halep talks to CNN about coronavirus lockdown in Romania, playing tennis this year

Romania's tennis star Simona Halep has talked to CNN about her life under coronavirus lockdown in Romania and the possibility of playing tennis again this year.

Locked down in her home in Bucharest, Simona Halep has been trying to adjust to her new life, which has forced her to slow down while trying to find other activities to keep busy.

"I have not been going out at all," Halep told CNN Sport. "I am definitely a person who takes these things very seriously and is nervous about them. The lockdown has been very strict here in Romania, we have had military on the streets and are not allowed to go outside."

She called the situation in Romania "scary" and said that she avoided watching too much or reading too much in the news. She has been focusing on helping instead, donating medical equipment to hospitals in Constanta and Bucharest.

The tennis star has also been trying to find other activities to keep busy during this period. She enjoys more sleep now, as she goes to bed late and gets up late, but she also works on her fitness daily, cooks, reads, watches movies, and talks to her family.

"It's definitely very strange to have no tennis in my life for such a long period of time," she said.

Simona Halep also told CNN that she is not very optimistic about playing tennis any time soon, as two major tournaments have been postponed or even canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Wimbledon, for example, has been canceled, while the French Open rescheduled its start date from May 24 to September 20.

"I believe that if we are playing tennis again in September, we have already won because it means the threat of the virus will be over," Halep told CNN Sport. "We can only dream of playing a grand slam at this point, but I support the tournament and of course I will look forward to playing if we can."

The full interview is available here.

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