STUTTGART, Germany — Even with eight of the world’s top 10 players in the main draw, an unranked rival is grabbing headlines at an indoor clay-court event this week.
Maria Sharapova, who was awarded a controversial wild card, will make her return to competition on Wednesday night at the Porsche Grand Prix, less than 24 hours after her 15-month doping ban ended.
The five-time Grand Slam champion and former world number one will have to rebuild her ranking from scratch, as only tournament results from the previous 12 months count towards the WTA rankings.
With Serena Williams and Madison Keys the only top-10 players missing, Sharapova enters the tournament in the final days of her suspension. But the three-time winner’s presence is hardly a surprise, as the Russian is a longtime brand ambassador for the car manufacturer that supports the tournament.
Madrid and Rome organizers followed Stuttgart’s lead. But Roland Garros officials have postponed until the week of May 15 their decision on whether to also offer the 2012 and 2014 champion a place in the main draw.
Some questions and answers about Sharapova’s return:
WHY WAS SHARAPOVA BANNED?
Sharapova was initially banned for two years after testing positive for the heart drug meldonium at last year’s Australian Open. Her suspension was reduced to 15 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which ruled that Sharapova had committed “minor misconduct” in the case and could not “be considered an intentional doper.” Sharapova had been taking meldonium for many years but ignored WADA’s announcement that it had added the drug to its banned list as of January 1, 2016.
HOW DID PLAYERS REACT TO HIS WILD CARD?
The announcement by Stuttgart organizers in January sparked a debate that has hardly died down three months later. Caroline Wozniacki said that “it’s disrespectful to other players.” Dominika Cibulkova, Agnieszka Radwanska and Andy Murray have also spoken out publicly against invitations for players returning from doping bans. German players, led by two-time defending Stuttgart champion Angelique Kerber, have also voiced their criticism. German Fed Cup captain Barbara Rittner said over the weekend that “Sharapova should have started from scratch,” meaning playing smaller tournaments and the qualifying phase of the biggest events.
So who is Sharapova’s joker victim?
Pavel Golovkin, Associated Press file
In this July 3, 2015 file photo, Maria Sharapova returns a ball to Irina-Camelia Begu during their singles match at the All England Lawn Tennis Championships in Wimbledon, London.
Julia Goerges. The 2011 Stuttgart champion would have been an obvious choice for German organisers, but the world-ranked 46th-ranked player will not be competing at the event. Playing in the Fed Cup in Ukraine this weekend, Goerges was unable to compete in the qualifying rounds in Stuttgart. Her compatriot and last year’s runner-up Laura Siegemund was given one of three wild cards, along with Sharapova and Johanna Konta. Siegemund said organisers “should try to use the wild cards to help the German players who would not have been able to participate otherwise. Julia Goerges played for our country this weekend, but that basically means she scored an own goal.”
HOW IS SHARAPOVA PREPARING FOR HER RETURN?
According to her social media posts, Sharapova traveled to Germany last Friday. She trained at a local tennis club, Sillenbuch. As a banned player, she is not allowed access to official tournament facilities until Wednesday and was conspicuously absent from the player presentation night on Monday on Centre Court.
WHO WILL SHARAPOVA PLAY IN STUTTGART?
In the first round, Maria Sharapova dominated the Italian, 6-0, 6-1 and 6-2, 6-1. Both matches were played on hard courts and the last one was five years ago. If she qualifies, Maria Sharapova could have an interesting match in the second round against Radwanska, who spoke out strongly against the Russian’s wild card last week. “There will be extreme pressure on Maria,” said Anke Huber, formerly ranked fourth in the world and a member of the organizing committee. “You don’t come back on court after 15 months and play as if nothing happened. Even if she wins her first match, she will still feel tense in the second.”
