Following her stunning elimination from the French Open on Thursday, Simona Halep revealed she suffered a panic attack during her second-round loss at Court Simonne-Mathieu.
Halep, the tournament’s 19th seed and a former world No. 1, halted her match against Zheng Qinwen, 19, of China to receive medical attention after taking an early lead following the first set. The match’s momentum would soon shift upon returning to action as Zheng went on to defeat the two-time Grand Slam champion 2–6, 6–2, 6–1.
“Yeah, it was a difficult one. I was playing well at the start. I had a break in the second set but then something happened and I just lost it,” Halep explained to reporters after the match.