Halep has not played a match since the 2022 US Open, when she lost in the first round. The former world No. 1 was provisionally suspended in October of that year after testing positive for the banned substance roxadustat in a urine sample provided during the US Open.

She was later given a second anti-doping charge related to her athlete biological passport. An independent tribunal later banned Halep for four years, charging her with two breaches of the tennis anti-doping programme – one for the positive test and one relating to irregularities found in her ABP.

The Romanian appealed to CAS, with the hearing taking place last month. Earlier this week, the body announced that the panel reduced Halep’s suspension to nine months, backdated to October 2022. The panel chose to share the decision as soon as possible, given that their ruling meant that Halep has been eligible to play since July.

And the 32-year-old has already scheduled her first tournament following her suspension. On Thursday, Halep announced that she had received a wildcard into the upcoming Miami Open, which begins on March 19.

“I’m thrilled to let you all know that I will be making my return to the WTA Tour in two weeks at the @miamiopen,” the 24-time title winner wrote on Instagram. “Thank you to the tournament for giving me this opportunity and I cannot wait to be back on court and competing. See you all soon!”

It comes just two days after CAS announced their decision to slash Halep’s ban. The panel accepted Halep’s argument that the roxadustat entered her body as a result of contamination from a supplement that she used in the days before the positive test.