Simona Halep suffered a brutal defeat in the round-of-16 of the WTA 125 tournament in Hong Kong just a day after clinching her first win in over two years.
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On Wednesday, the former world No. 1 edged out Aryna Rodionova 6-2 4-6 6-4 to collect her first win since returning to tennis from doping suspension - later she described it as something special.
Today, the two-time Grand Slam champion was back in action but it didn't go well at all for her since No. 7 Anna Blinkova dismantled her with a 6-2 6-1 scoreline.
Early in the first set, Halep saved a break point in the first game but then also missed out on three consecutive break points in the fourth game. The Romanian paid the price for not realizing a great chance to go up by a break as Blinkova claimed three breaks in a row and won seven consecutive games to go 6-2 2-0 up.
While the former world No. 1 managed to save six break points in the third game of the second set and finally end Blinkova's run, her struggles continued as the Russian collected back-to-back breaks in the fifth and seventh games to end the match on a four-game winning run.
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Halep was probably tired after not playing for an extended period
After returning to tennis in March, the 33-year-old appeared in just two tournaments before taking a break to address her knee injury. But after not playing since May, she surprised her fans late last week when she announced she would play in Hong Kong.
"Hello guys, I figured today was a great day to share the great news that I will be back on the court sooner than expected. I will be flying to Hong Kong tomorrow to compete in the WTA125 Hong Kong Open. Big thanks to the tournament for the wildcard and I cannot wait to see you all there," the Romanian announced in a video posted on the tournament's X account.
Since Halep's first match back lasted over two hours on Wednesday, it probably left a toll on her body and it reflected in the outcome versus Blinkova.
