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Coach Darren Cahill declared Simona Halep’s 2019 Wimbledon final performance against Serena Williams as the best one of the Romanian’s career. After becoming a Grand Slam champion at the 2018 French Open, Halep lifted her second Slam title the following year at Wimbledon after ousting Williams 6-2 6-2.
Cahill, who worked with Halep for six years, thinks the Romanian’s 2018 French Open run also gave her the belief she could do the same at Wimbledon. “So I enjoyed every piece of those years that we spent together. She backed it up in 2019 by winning the Wimbledon final and playing incredibly well through the semis and final.
I think the best match she ever played was against Serena (Williams) in that final. She struggled a little bit to get through to the semis and the finals but once she got there she had a real sense of belief and I think if she didn’t win the Roland Garros final the year before she would have never played to that level to win Wimbledon.
And credit to her and she is an amazing young lady,” Cahill said on the Advantage Connors podcast.
Cahill on how Halep is viewed in Romania
When Cahill started to work with Halep in 2015, the Romanian was already regarded as one of the most talented and best players on the Tour.
But Halep wanted to elevate her game to another level and become a Grand Slam champion and also reach the world No 1 ranking. “An amazing lady with 20 million in Romania who basically idolizes her. She is an icon in the country and feeling and sensing that pressure from that country to have a breakthrough and Grand Slam success, be the No 1 player in the world, and find a way to put that to one side and accomplish that.
I have nothing but respect for her,” Cahill said. Meanwhile, Halep hasn’t played since the 2022 US Open. Last week, Halep received a four-year doping ban after her case was heard in front of the independent tribunal.
Source: Tennis World USA
