Maria Sharapova should not expect 'a welcome back party' with ban reduced
Nick McCarvel, Special for USA TODAY Sports 11:20 a.m. EDT October 4, 2016
The waiting is over: Maria Sharapova now knows she will come back to tennis nine months earlier than her initial two-year ban for testing positive for the banned substance Meldonium set her out for.
Her next test? Getting ready to make a comeback.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport announced Tuesday that Sharapova’s two-year ban has been reduced to 15 months, meaning she is eligible to play again on April 25, 2017. That means she will be available to play in three of the four Grand Slams starting with the French Open which starts May 28.
As a former champion at both the Grand Slam events and WTA Finals, Sharapova will be eligible for unlimited wild-card entries into tournaments. Having been inactive since the 2016 Australian Open, she will return to tennis unranked and need free passes into events to play them.
Sharapova turns 30 on April 19, meaning she is due back to the sport a week after a landmark birthday.
How hard will such a return be? The press coverage will no doubt be next level for an athlete that has been one of the biggest draws in any female sport for over a decade. She will face a growing army of players set to challenge her and increased scrutiny of every move.
“Given her mentality and her toughness and her determination, she’s going to come back more motivated than ever,” ESPN analyst Pam Shriver told USA TODAY Sports in a phone interview. “I don’t see any reason that sometime in 2017 she won’t hit that Maria Sharapova stride again.”
Sharapova rocked the tennis world with her surprise revelation in early March, many expecting the “major announcement” to be retirement for the Russian, who has often been injured in her career, including a major shoulder surgery in 2009.
She has kept busy since: She took a summer class at Harvard Business School; completed an NBA internship in New York; took up boxing (according to her Instagram), and continued to make appearances for her Sugarpova candy line and her myriad of sponsors, none of which dropped her.
“I’ve gone from one of the toughest days of my career last March when I learned about my suspension to now, one of my happiest days, as I found out I can return to tennis in April,” Sharapova said in a statement Tuesday. “In so many ways, I feel like something I love was taken away from me and it will feel really good to have it back. Tennis is my passion and I have missed it. I am counting the days until I can return to the court.”
The ended with, “I’m coming back soon and I can’t wait.”
How the tennis world – fans, fellow players and sponsors – will receive Sharapova when she does come back will be watched closely. She has always been a popular if not divisive star with the public, though has maintained few friends on tour. After Sharapova’s ban earlier this year, Kristina Mladenovic, a French player, called Sharapova a “cheater” and said she “didn’t deserve” all of her victories in light of the positive test.
“She has never been seen as a very warm or congenial figure by other players, even away from competition,” explained Shriver. “I don’t think there is going to be a welcome back party. … I think there will be some boos, but I think overall, her fans – she has a tremendous fan base – most of them have been loyal. To me, that will be the predominant voice that is heard, but not the only voice.”
Shriver said she feels as though the biggest test Sharapova could face is a physical one: How will the five-time Grand Slam champion and former world No. 1 do in long matches without a substance in her system that was known to increase lung capacity?
“Will she be as successful in three-setters?” Shriver asked. “How is she going to perform from the two- to three-hour mark in matches? She is going to be rested and motivated and will want to prove that the drug had nothing to do with her career success. This is a motivation that we have never seen from Maria Sharapova before.”
To Shriver, however, this is the perfect moment for a Sharapova return.
“Serena Williams won’t be getting any stronger in 2017, she will win some majors, yes, but no one else aside from Angelique Kerber has been able to make their mark in women’s tennis,” she said. “This is a great window in women’s tennis. To me, 2017 is as interesting of a year as we’ve had in a long time. And late in the year Victoria Azarenka should be back too.”
Azarenka, another Grand Slam winner and former world No. 1, announced a pregnancy in July of this past year.
Physically, the break may have served Sharapova best. She often posts photos and videos of herself working out and training on social media, including plenty of boxing.
“I think she could be physically fitter than when the suspension started,” said Shriver. “If that’s the case when she comes back, then she could come out of the gates pretty tough and contend for titles right away.”
The ever-shifting landscape in women’s tennis could play to Sharapova’s advantage over the next several years if she’s able to stay healthy and keep her top form, however. She was never a player that expected to play into her mid-30s, but nor were the Williams sisters, neither of which will even discuss retirement at this point.
The sport has shifted, as well, with more players extending their careers as care for their bodies and physical fitness improves with changing technologies.
A motivated Maria who has just turned 30? That could be very dangerous.
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