American icon Andy Roddick and Belgian tennis great Kim Clijsters came down hard on French coach Patrick Mouratoglou recently.

The two former US Open winners were speaking on Roddick’s podcast ‘Served with Andy Roddick’ where they discussed Simona Halep‘s case.

The Romanian is currently banned from tennis till September 2026. This was in line with her samples taken after the 2022 US Open where she lost in the first round. The samples returned the presence of Roxadustat, a banned substance by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

As a result, she was banned for four years by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA). Halep has refused the charges from day one and also appealed the decision in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). If she’s able to prove her innocence, her ban will be lifted.

Amid all this, the big blame has gone towards Mouratoglou and his Academy. Halep was working with the Frenchman in 2022. Initially, she did not suspect him and his team but after a public admission by the French coach, things were made clear.

The supplements provided to the two-time Major winner contained the banned substance which has caused all this. The former Wimbledon champ quickly cut ties and criticized Mouratoglou for breaking her trust and ruining her career.

Amid all this, Halep has received support from both Roddick and Clijsters who questioned the French coach and his Academy.

For me, the biggest wake-up call is, you know, the team. Yeah, he's he's kind of, and we're talking about Patrick Mouratoglou. She basically transformed her whole team and he's kind of been in control, he's brought his people in, but it's unpleasant that she's going to potentially end up being a conversation piece.

Said Roddick speaking on his Podcast.

It's like, well, you know, this guy that comes in is great at self-promotion. His website, I went on it the other day and there's like 18 different photo shoots. It's like a prepackaged situation. I say it's like "Puff Daddy, who used to be in all the '90s music videos. Now that's how he is with the players' boxes

Added the American.

Kim Clijsters calls Patrick Mouratoglou ‘manipulative’

The Belgian also didn’t hold back from calling out the former coach of Serena Williams. His success with the 23-time Major winner made him a big name in tennis circles. As a result, he got coaching gigs with players like Stefanos Tsitsipas and Coco Gauff. He is now the full-time coach of Holger Rune.

The former Australian Open winner didn’t hold back. She called him and his team ‘red flags’ while claiming to have full faith in Halep for not doping despite not knowing her personally.

But in a situation like this, and especially for women, when you have coaches taking over your team, where they, I mean, I call it manipulation, I can't find another word for it. Taking control of everything that happens related to the athlete... It's hard for me to accept that you know, in this case, it's about Patrick.

Said Clijsters.

Halep currently awaits the decision of CAS after her hearing finished on 9th February. If she wins the battle, she can return to the Tour immediately. If not, she will be out of all competitions till September 2026.