Maria Sharapova has criticised the International Tennis Federation after seeing her doping ban reduced to 15 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Sharapova was initially handed a two-year suspension by the ITF after testing positive for meldonium - a substance which was added to the banned list on January 1 of this year - at the 2016 Australian Open.
The 29-year-old will now be allowed to return to the sport on April 26, 2017, and she revealed that she is already "counting the days".
"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. 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," Sharapova wrote on Facebook.
"I have learned from this, and I hope the ITF has as well. Cas concluded that 'the panel has determined it does not agree with many of the conclusions of the [ITF] Tribunal...' I have taken responsibility from the very beginning for not knowing that the over-the-counter supplement I had been taking for the last 10 years was no longer allowed. But I also learned how much better other federations were at notifying their athletes of the rule change, especially in Eastern Europe where Mildronate [also known as meldonium] is commonly taken by millions of people.
"Now that this process is over, I hope the ITF and other relevant tennis anti-doping authorities will study what these other federations did, so that no other tennis player will have to go through what I went through. I thank you so much for living and breathing so many of these tough months together. During this time, I have learned the true meaning of a fan and I am so fortunate to have had your support. I'm coming back soon and I can't wait!"
The five-time Grand Slam winner will now be able to compete in next year's French Open, Wimbledon and US Open.
Barney Corkhill
