World No 2 tennis player Iga Swiatek says she feared a more negative reaction to doping ban
The Pole, addressing the issue for the first time, not expecting an appeal by Wada, but says ‘I have no influence on what’s going to happen’
Iga Swiatek admitted she feared a more negative reaction to her doping ban and sees no reason for the case to drag on.
The Pole was handed a one-month suspension in November after a positive test for the angina medication trimetazidine, which the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted was caused by contamination of a medicine the world No 2 player was taking to help combat jet lag.
It was the second high-profile doping case to hit the sport in a matter of months following men’s world No 1 Jannik Sinner’s two failed tests, for which he did not receive a ban.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) appealed against that decision and Sinner still has the threat of a suspension hanging over him, but Swiatek is not expecting a similar outcome in her situation.
She served a brief provisional suspension, causing her to miss three tournaments in the autumn, before completing the ban during the off-season once her punishment was announced.
Addressing the matter for the first time at a press conference ahead of the United Cup in Australia – the first tournament of the new season – Swiatek said of the possibility of a Wada appeal: “Well I don’t think there is any reason, because I didn’t play three tournaments.
