FORMER world No. 1 Simona Halep says she is no longer afraid of COVID-19 after getting vaccinated and has called on others within the sport to get the vaccine to allow tennis to ease health and safety restrictions.
Halep, who turns 30 next month, did not travel to New York for the US Open Grand Slam last September due to the pandemic but then tested positive for the virus in October.
She received the vaccine in February.
“I don’t feel afraid, because I am vaccinated,” Halep told reporters after her opening win in the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati.
“I feel protected. I am taking care. I wear the mask when many people are around.”
Professional tennis, which requires players to jet around the world, was shut down for five months last year as countries locked down borders to stem the spread of the virus. — Reuters
