The success of Danielle Collins from Miami brought Simona Halep a “distinction” rarely granted in tennis. It is about the “Wooden Spoon”, which is not awarded for a counter-performance, but as a result of a string of results with minimal chances of occurring. And which, in the case of the Romanian, happened twice, in two consecutive contests!
Simona Halep. Photo EPA EFE
More precisely, Halep became the first player in history who was at one time ranked 1st in the WTA and who “wins” the “Wooden Spoon” in two tournaments in a row. This “trophy” has an ironic connotation, similar to the “Golden Raspberry” in cinematography. It is not officially awarded in tennis and a chain of results must occur for a player to receive this title.
The “Wooden Spoon” is “won” by a player who loses in the first round, her winner stops in the second round, and so on until the final. In Miami, it happened exactly like this: Simona lost in the 1st round against Badosa, the Iberian was defeated in the second round by Sabalenka, the Belarusian lost in the 3rd round against Anhelina Kalinina, the Ukrainian was eliminated in the round of 16 by Putintseva, who was beaten in the quarters by Azarenka, and she was eliminated in the semifinals by Rybakina. And the Kazakh lost the final against Daniela Collins!
The irony of fate makes Simona receive two “spoons” consecutively. At the last tournament she participated in before the doping scandal, US Open 2022, the Romanian experienced the same scenario: she was beaten in the inaugural round by Daria Snigur, who lost in the second round to Rebecca Marino, who in the 3rd round was defeated by Shuai Zhang, who in the 4th round was eliminated by Cori Gauff, who in the quarters lost to Carolina Garcia, who was eliminated by Ons Jabeur in the semifinals, and the Tunisian lost the final to Iga Swiatek.
The situation is funny and turns Simona Halep into the only former WTA leader of all time who “conquers” in two successive “Wooden Spoon” tournaments.
