Dubai: Small town girl Simona Halep hopes her drive towards the top of the WTA rankings will help bring her greater recognition back home in Romania.
The world No. 53 is from the city of Constanta — in Romania's Dobruja region, on the Black Sea coast — an area that has produced a smattering of moderate sportspeople in the past, mostly in handball and swimming.
Halep, who reached the second round of the women's singles at the Dubai Duty Free Women's Open here last week before falling to Caroline Wozniacki, has high hopes for the future.
And if that means she becomes something of a celebrity back home, the 20-year-old would be delighted. "I feel good in my city. The people are very nice with me. My parents are in Constanta, my family is there," said Halep, whose father runs a dairy factory in the city.
"It's nice when I go home. Yes, there are people who know me. It's not like I'm not very famous because I am in the top 50, but I have to improve more and to be more famous probably."
Her earliest memories are in Constanta — a place where she learnt the rudiments of the game. But better facilities and a need to take her game to the next level forced her to move to the Romanian capital Bucharest, where she has been based for the past three years.
Pursuing her dream, Halep reached a career-high No. 40 in September last year, but has now slipped, although a first-round victory over fancied Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova here hinted at more to come. "My coach [Tomai Firicel Danut] is from Bucharest, so I have to be there as I need to practice on a regular basis," Halep said.
Tackling the bigger players is one certain way Halep can make her way up the rankings. And she has certainly had her moments in the past two weeks, with wins in Doha against Daniela Hantuchova and Iveta Benesova before ultimately going down in straight sets to world number one and champion Victoria Azarenka.
"Yeah, there is a lot I can draw from such matches. Last week I played with very good players. I have more experience now and I believe in my chance more than before. I feel the ball very good, the court too, and I feel my game very good," said the 2008 French Open junior champion.
"So it was important, that victory against Hantuchova. After that match I believed more in me and so I play better every day."