Bucharest—Former world number one Simona Halep said Monday she would need a few weeks of rest after undergoing nose surgery.
The Romanian, who currently ranks ninth in the world, said she had been struggling “for a while” with nose problems, and they got worse during the summer, making it hard to breathe especially at night.
“The only way to solve the problem was to undergo surgery,” the 30-year-old said in an Instagram post, adding that the surgeon took “this opportunity to also make a plastic surgery intervention”.
“Everything went well. I will need a few weeks of rest before I can start again any physical activity,” she said, posting a picture of her smiling from what looked like a hospital bed, her nose bandaged.
“See you soon on the tennis court.”
Halep, a two-time Grand Slam champion, was knocked out of the US Open in the first round last month, losing to Ukrainian qualifier Daria Snigur.
Meanwhile, new world number two Casper Ruud announced Tuesday he will start his 2023 season at the Auckland Classic when the ATP Tour event returns in January after a three-year hiatus because of Covid.
The 23-year-old Norwegian rose to a career-high second in the world despite losing Sunday’s US Open final to Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz.
It was Ruud’s second Grand Slam final defeat of 2022 after falling to Rafael Nadal at the French Open in June.
Ruud, a winner at ATP tournaments in Gstaad, Geneva and Buenos Aires this year, will headline the Auckland men’s tournament beginning January 9 as he warms up for the first Grand Slam of the year at the Australian Open in Melbourne starting a week later.
“New Zealand is a very beautiful country. The conditions are very similar to Melbourne so it is a nice tournament to play,” he said.