Maria Sharapova on the defense and what tennnis stars think of it

Maria Sharapova is saying the International Tennis Federation targeted her and she’s not letting this go.

Maria Sharapova is not holding back by stating that the ITF arbitration process that resulted in her suspension was tainted from the start, wanted her banned for much longer, and that the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) came to her rescue by reducing the sentence to just 15 months earlier this week. Meaning, she’ll be playing as soon as April of next year, just in time for the second grand slam of the year, the French Open, the only grand slam she has won twice.

The former world No. 1 is also maintaining her innocence and sticking with her defense of “I didn’t know,” which is also rubbing a lot of people wrong. Further, she claimed that the ITF was hoping to keep her out of the game for even longer and they were biased from the start of the investigation.

In the 29-year-old’s interview on Charlie Rose, Sharapova threw some tough shots at the ITF, “I got a 24-month suspension but they [ITF] wanted four years for me. I went through the ITF hearing, which was in front of an arbitration panel which was chosen by the ITF… they call that neutral?”

OK, we get it. She’s angry, she got caught, and thinks she was made an example of. However, to many, that doesn’t excuse the discretion and her lack of humility throughout the process.

Wimbledon champion and fellow tennis star Novak Djokovic coach had this to say:

But also this:

Sharapova’s comments rubbed US Open finalist and ESPN commentator Pam Shriver the wrong way as well. She retweeted this:

And offered her opinion:

British journalist and broadcaster Andrew Pierce thinks the ban should have been stronger:

Although the Wimbledon winner lost sponsorships from Tag Heur, Nike, and Porsche when the original two-year suspension was announced in March (but backdated to January), tennis equipment maker Head has maintained their support of the Russian all along.

The sponsorship losses resulted in Serena Williams supplanting the Russian as the highest-paid female athlete in July of this year. Perhaps more of these sponsors will come back now that they know their star player will be active on the scene?

Since meldonium, the drug Sharapova tested positive for, was monitored throughout 2015 and officially banned in 2016, Sharapova’s claims of relying on Russian Federation reports and knowing that “others” are doing it are coming off as flimsy excuses by other tennis players.

Competitor Sam Stosur also didn’t mince words, “I can’t believe it, actually,” she said in her interview with Tennis Magazine. …”I don’t know how you can get away with that excuse and have that overturned… It really sets a bad precedence for athletes moving forward, where you can almost put your hands up and say it was not my fault.”

The Australian Stosur further said Sharapova wouldn’t be getting much support from the other WTA ladies on tour, “So I wouldn’t imagine there’s a lot of support from that playing group.”

Two time-Olympic gold medalist Andy Murray isn’t buying Sharapova’s excuse either. “To be honest, I don’t really see that as being a valid excuse,” according to Tennis Magazine. “If you’re taking, you know, any medication, it’s your responsibility as the athlete to check and make sure that what you’re taking is legal…. There is absolutely no reason why you shouldn’t know whether it’s on the banned list or not.”

Even world No. 20 Grigor Dmitrov, set for the finals at the China Open (with Murray), doesn’t have much sympathy for his ex-girlfriend, “If you do something, I mean obviously there are circumstances. And whoever does something deserves what he gets for sure.”

However, tennis legends and commentators Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert are taking more wait-and-see approaches and urging the public to move on.

What will Maria Sharapova do next? Since the suspension announcement in March, Sharapova has been focusing on her fitness, practicing, introducing a new chocolate line from her candy brand, Sugarpova, and having time to herself.

In her Charlie Rose interview, she explained the joy she’s found in enjoying her weekends. “The weekends are a grand slam final and that is what you are working for, so from that perspective it has changed. I have been training in a different way, not for a tournament… I was just training for myself and it felt good.”

In addition to her two French slams, she also has retains grand slam titles from the US Open, Australian Open, and Wimbledon, one of the few tennis athletes with that record. She will need to participate in tournaments prior to Roland Garros to ramp up her competitor points required to enter the grand slams. The big question remains if she will be offered wild cards in those tournaments next year, which is likely.

In the meantime, Sharapova will be joining tennis stars John McEnroe, Andy Roddick, and Navratilova at the World Team Tennis Smash Hits exhibition event at Caesars Palace this week in Las Vegas, her first public tennis appearance since the ban.