Coach Clears the Air Between him and Simona Halep

Recently, in an interview with RTBF, Belgian coach, Thierry Van Cleemput shed light on his split with Simona Halep after a short trial period. The two began working together in the wake of the Australian Open. He and Halep travelled to Doha but she ultimately lost to Elise Mertens in the final.

Speaking on his former ward, Van Cleemput said “I want to say that everything went well and that she is a great champion and a top girl. She had a good tournament. But I am not okay with it at all. I cannot do anything about it.”

The 50-year old confessed that communication was a major issue. The language barrier played a big role because she had to speak English and his English was not so fluent.

Van Cleemput took Halep under his wing after five years with compatriot David Goffin. While he admitted that it was nice, he wanted to shift his focus on the younger and upcoming players.

Simona Halep also spoke about Dubai and what she liked about various aspects of the city for example the atmosphere, the people and it feels like a holiday.

The Romanian player separated from Darren Cahill at the end of 2018. She was not particularly desperate to look for a coach, she was perfectly satisfied with her team and hitting partner.

Halep feels that her priorities are changing little by little. She feels more responsible for herself and she tries to solve her own issues.

She continued, “Hopefully, I can play good tennis, even if I don’t have enough time to get used to the courts. It’s a little bit different, even if it’s the same, the hard court. But I’m confident. If the confidence is high, it’s much better.”

Sadly, she was downed by Belinda Bencic in the Dubai quarterfinals. Bencic later went on to reach the final and downed defending champion Elina Svitolina in the semi-final. She later trounced Petra Kvitova in the final.