After the court reduced her two-year ban to fifteen months, Maria Sharapova plans to return to the tennis court immediately. She also criticizes the head of ITF anti-doping agency for trying to end her tennis career prematurely.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport reduced the two-year ban fifteen months on appeal. The International Tennis Federation tribunal imposed the ban in June after Sharapova was tested positive for the heart-boosting drug meldonium in January as reported by The Guardian.
Sharapova says that she could not believe the ITF tried to end her career with the doping case just to make an example out of her. She slams the head of ITF anti doping agency Stuart Miller for trying to end her career.
"They wanted to ban me for four years; that was their way of conceding to me," she said in an interview with New York Times. " I'm sitting there just shaking my head on how so many athletes and tennis players are in the hands of someone in his position. I really couldn't believe it."
Following the reduction of her ban the five-times grand slam champion is ready to return to tennis. The Women's Tennis Association is welcoming her comeback. WTA head Steve Simon said that Sharapova can expect to receive a spree of wild cards, as quoted by The Telegraph. Simon also insisted that she would not have to climb from the bottom of the ladder, he said the game will welcome Sharapova back as it should be.
Prior to the ban, Sharapova revealed in March that she failed to pass the drug test at the 2016 Australian Open. The 29-year old admitted to testing positive for meldonium, which she had been taking for more than 10 years, due to magnesium deficiency and her family history of diabetes.
The World Anti-Doping Agency added meldonium to its banned substances list in January 2016. However, there are many objections from the anti doping experts because they found no evidence of the performance enhancement of the athlete who took the anti-ischemia drug. In the United States, meldonium is listed as an unscheduled drug.
