The head of the Russian Tennis Federation has told national media that Maria Sharapova will not be attending a hearing with the ITF until at least June.
Sharapova is currently suspended from competition after testing positive for meldonium, a newly banned substance. Throughout the case the former world No.1 has maintained her innocence and has argued that she took the drug to treat her health problems and not to get a competitive edge in the sport.
The details about the case are currently confidential, including the date of Sharapova’s first hearing. According to a series of American media sources, including Sports Illustrated, the first hearing is scheduled to take place this week in London. Those reports have now been dismissed by Russian Tennis president Shamil Tarpishchev, who told Sovsport.ru that no date has been confirmed.
“As far as I know, until the end of May, no one is listening,” Tarpishchev told Sovsport.
“Now is the preparatory process, but the date has not yet been chosen.”
The 29-year-old hasn’t played a match on the tour since her quarterfinal loss to Serena Williams at the Australian Open. The Probability of the Russian returning to the tour in the near future appears to be getting smaller according to the information that Tarpishchev has. Speaking about the case, he described the process as ‘complicated’.
“Sharapova’s situation is complicated. The thing is that she admitted that she had taken meldonium. The case will not be considered so long as the two laboratories do not study the preparation. I believe that’s not going to happen earlier than June,” he told Russian news agency TASS.
Previously the head of Russian tennis was confident that Sharapova would return to the tour in time to play in the Rio Olympics this summer. These optimistic words are now fading away as Tarpischev refused to rule out that the 29-year-old could receive a ban by the International Tennis Federation due to her failed test
“Masha’s case is more complicated. The [meldonium] concentration in her blood is above the norm,” he said.
“Masha took the formula for several years on her doctor’s prescription. I am not going to announce if she will be able to avoid punishment or not. We just want her to restore her position in sport.”
Tarpishchev was asked directly if he thought that Sharapova would receive a ban. The Russian official remained coy on the matter and refused to give a direct answer. Instead, he described the case as ‘difficult’ as Sharapova’s career hangs in the balance.
