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Serena Williams had a simple message after her one-time tennis rival Simona Halep was banned for four years for a doping violation: "8 is a better number".
- Serena Williams won 23 grand slam singles titles but lost to Simona Halep in the 2019 Wimbledon final
- At the time, it was a record for the open era
- Halep says she will appeal her four-year doping ban
Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, Williams provided no additional context to the message, but the implication was clear.
Williams, who retired after the 2022 US Open, feels that she should be awarded an eighth Wimbledon title — the one she lost to Halep in 2019.
That was one of four grand slam singles finals Williams lost when chasing Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 grand slam singles wins — a mark since equalled by Novak Djokovic.
She feels cheated — although there is no evidence to suggest that Halep was doping as early as 2019.
Halep thrashed Williams 6-2, 6-2 at SW19 in that meeting.
That was Halep's second grand slam title, having previously won the 2018 French Open.
The Romanian star was first suspended from competition in October 2022 after a positive in-competition test at the US Open — more than three years after their meeting in the Wimbledon final.
The 31-year-old was charged with two separate breaches of the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme, relating to an Adverse Analytical Finding for the prohibited substance roxadustat at the US Open in 2022.
The second charge, which she was hit with in May this year, related to irregularities in Halep's Athlete Biological Passport (ABP).
On Tuesday, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) said an independent tribunal came to the "strong opinion" that "likely doping was the explanation for the irregularities in Halep's profile.".
It also found that, although accepting Halep had taken a contaminated supplement, "the volume that player ingested could not have resulted in the concentration of roxadustat in the positive sample.".
The ITIA said it had received about 8,000 pages of evidence as part of the hearing.
"The independent tribunal, established by Sport Resolutions, met on 28 and 29 June 2023 in London, and heard from expert scientific witnesses on behalf of Halep and the ITIA, with the player also giving evidence directly to the panel as part of proceedings," the ITIA said in a statement.
Halep has continually maintained her innocence throughout the process and said she would challenge the decision.
"I am continuing to train and am committed to clearing my name from these allegations," she wrote in a statement.
"I intend to appeal this decision to The Court of Arbitration for Sport and seek legal actions against the supplement company involved."
The WTA said it would continue to monitor the case.
"It is of the utmost importance for players to be aware of the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme rules and to follow them," the WTA said.
"The independent tribunal has made its ruling surrounding Simona's case and under the TADP, the decision may be appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
"The WTA will support the decisions reached through the process and will continue to follow this closely."
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