Published: 09:52 BST, 20 August 2026 | Updated: 10:47 BST, 20 August 2026
Former World No 1 tennis star Simona Halep has hit out at Nick Kyrgios following the Australian's positive cocaine test bombshell.
Kyrgios, 31, revealed he has been provisionally suspended from the sport after he submitted a sample while playing in Mallorca on June 22 that contained benzoylecgonine, a substance found in the class A drug.
Kyrgios said he took 'full responsibility' for his mistake and was 'deeply disappointed' in himself.
The Australian has been suspended since August 4, meaning he cannot play in, coach at, or attend any professional men's or women's tournament, including Grand Slams such as Wimbledon.
Kyrgios has staunchly opposed drug use in tennis and has regularly taken aim at stars who have tested positive.
He ruthlessly berated Halep while she served a ban for a doping violation in 2023, labelling her a 'potato'.
Simona Halep has hit back at Nick Kyrgios following his positive cocaine test
Australian tennis star Kyrgios publicly berated the former No 1 during her doping ban
Halep took to social media on Wednesday and said: 'Never kick someone when they're down'
'I'd imagine if I was taking similar things to be banned for 4 years, I'd have about 5 slams. Potato,' he wrote.
'I run on bananas and coke cola in 5 set battles. And my record in them speaks for itself. Maybe players should just stop taking shady s***.
'Look yourself in the mirror at the end of the day and say yep I did it right. Not hard.'
Following Kyrgios' admission of cocaine use on Wednesday, Halep took to Instagram to have her say, sharing a photo of a bottle of coke and a bunch of bananas in a not-so-subtle dig at the Australian.
She later posted: 'Never kick someone when they're down. Life has a strange way of changing positions and an even stranger way of revealing the difference between an accident and a choice.'