Darren Cahill believes there is ‘no chance’ that Simona Halep knowingly took a prohibited substance
Two-time Grand Slam winner Simona Halep’s ex-coach Darren Cahill has said there is “no chance” that the Romanian tennis player knowingly took a banned substance after Halep was provisionally suspended due to a failed drugs test.
The world number nine was tested during the calendar year’s last Grand Slam, the US Open. On Friday, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) confirmed that the anemia drug roxadustat was found in her A and B samples, which led to the 31-year-old being provisionally banned from WTA events.
Halep wrote on social that the findings were “the biggest shock of my life,” while claiming that she felt “completely confused and betrayed.”
On Instagram, Cahill, who oversaw her development for six years and guided Halep to her maiden Grand Slam title in 2018 when she won the French Open, said that Halep’s integrity was “faultless” and there is “NO chance” she “knowingly purposely took any substance on the banned list.”
“None. Zero,” Cahill added in a lengthy post.
— Simona Halep (@Simona_Halep) October 21, 2022