Simona Halep eying Palermo as first event back following shutdown

Simona Halep could play the WTA's first event back, saying she would like to compete next month in Palermo.

"I have not yet made a decision, but I hope to start with Palermo," she was quoted as telling press by *Reuters*.

Having just finished competing in a mixed doubles exhibition with Horia Tecau in the Romanian town of Cluj-Napoca, Halep is eager to get back to playing. The 28-year-old had won Dubai days before the WTA tour was suspended by coronavirus. The ongoing pause also prevented her from defending her title at Wimbledon.

"It's hard," she said. "My life has changed, everything is different. But the fact that I didn't travel a lot was also a good thing, because I rested a lot."

The WTA plans to resume next month with Palermo, an International-level tournament on clay, and is finalizing events for the second week. Cincinnati, relocated to Flushing Meadows and the US Open, will then follow.

The world No.2 did not give any more plans about her schedule, having previously indicated she was reluctant about going to play the US Open. Roland Garros, where Halep raised her first major trophy is 2018, is slated to cap off a rescheduled swing of larger European clay-court events in late September.