Former Wimbledon champion Simona Halep is aware of she now has competitors as the most well-liked tennis participant in Romania after Emma Raducanu burst on to the scene.
Briton Raducanu, whose father is Romanian, gained a military of followers after her beautiful win on the US Open final summer season.
While Halep stays the queen in Bucharest and past, she says that {the teenager}’s success final yr has impressed lots of people in her nation.
“Well, many people were following her when she won US Open,” Raducanu mentioned. “I feel like the country was happy for her. Her being half Romanian means a lot also for the Romanians.
“Many kids are following her. I think she inspired many kids back in Romania, so it’s a good thing for our country.”
Raducanu cited the 30-year-old as one among her idols and the pair nearly performed twice on the again finish of final season, together with in Romania, however they haven’t shaped a relationship but.
“We haven’t hit,” Halep mentioned. “Tried once but it didn’t work. We speak just a little bit. But we don’t have long conversations.
“So no, we are not friends; we are just colleagues on the tour.”
This is Halep’s first return to SW19 since successful the 2019 title, having seen the 2020 version cancelled attributable to Covid-19 after which lacking final yr by way of harm.
It is Wimbledon custom for the defending girls’s champion to open Centre Court motion on the primary Tuesday, one thing Halep was not capable of do attributable to her absence final yr.
But with 2021 champion Ash Barty now retired there was a gap, however event officers as an alternative gave the slot to world primary Iga Swiatek.
Halep admits she is dissatisfied to overlook out.
“I’ve said this too much to say. But I can say that I feel sad that I missed it because I was injured, so I couldn’t really take the chance,” she mentioned.
“It would have been very nice to open the tournament. But my chance is gone. So probably in this life I can have another chance, so I will look forward to that.
“Not that simple, but I’m going to work for that.”
