STUTTGART, Germany (AP) - Maria Sharapova won her first match on her return from a 15-month doping ban, beating Roberta Vinci 7-5, 6-3 in the opening round of the Porsche Grand Prix on Wednesday.
The German vehicle company are one of Sharapova's sponsors and, having handed her a wildcard entry, delayed her first-round match to allow her to play on Wednesday after the expiration of her ban.
The 36th-ranked Vinci, who reached a career high 10th a year ago, said she would try to forget about the wild-card debate when stepping on court on today.
The ban was reduced to 15 months following a successful appeal in October (Sharapova claimed she had never read WADA's updated list, and her agent took the blame) the four-time Grand Slam victor has had a lot of time to kill.
The 30-year-old lost her world ranking due to the suspension, but was given direct entrance to the main draw of the Stuttgart event anyway through a wild card.
Vinci, the world number 36 who has taken just four games off Sharapova in two defeats, was echoing the opinions of Andy Murray, Agnieszka Radwanska and Caroline Wozniacki in demanding the Russian work her way back into the game.
Rome in particular is a thorny issue - French Open champion Francesca Schiavone in her final year will get a wildcard for pre-qualifying at her home tournament - IF she asks for it.
The decision has been criticised by many of her fellow players, but has been defended by the Chief Executive of the Women's Tennis Association Steve Simon. "She has such a huge fanbase and obviously that's going to bring more attraction to see how she will do, so I think it's good for tennis, good entertainment", said Azarenka. The raw win totals suggest that players coming back from an extended hiatus are immediately competitive, but a little less so than they were before taking time off.
Whale and boat collisions may be more common
The Whale and Dolphin Conservation said whales are unlikely to survive if they are struck by vessels in certain sensitive areas. The group is recommending that marine managers develop a strategy for vessels that transit near whales to minimize collisions.
Sharapova, a Russian, said she had not clicked on the link.
The 34-year-old Italian is best remembered for her run to the semi-finals of the 2015 US Open, beating Serena Williams in the process and preventing the American from achieving a calendar Grand Slam. But the wild card for the three-time victor is hardly a surprise as the Russian is a long-term brand ambassador for the sports vehicle manufacturer backing the tournament.
"This kind of entry into the tournament should apply to players who dropped in the ranking because of injury, illness or some other random event".
The longer it went on the more fluid Sharapova looked as she wrapped up her first win on her return, taking advantage of her serve which by now was in full flow as she record 11 aces in total. But an unconcerned Sharapova says: "I know I am respected".
Far from being remorseful, Sharapova recently hit out at tennis authorities for failing to give her sufficient warning that meldonium had become a banned substance.
Sharapova has previously won the event in Stuttgart on three occasions between 2012 and 2014. "For me it's a normal tournament".
The Russian tennis star has gone through a lot over the last couple of years, her on-court journey begins a new chapter on Wednesday. The test was administered before the 2016 Australian Open and tested positive for meldonium, a heart medication that is usually prescribed to treat coronary artery disease.
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