| Maria Sharapova v Roberta Vinci |
|---|
| Date: Wednesday 26 April Venue: Stuttgart Open |
| Coverage: Live commentary from 17:30 BST on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra, BBC Sport website and mobile app. |
Maria Sharapova’s wildcard entry into the Stuttgart Open has been defended by WTA chief Steve Simon, who said it is in keeping with how former dopers are treated in other sports.
The 30-year-old Russian’s 15-month ban for using meldonium ends on Wednesday when she plays in the first round.
“You have to look at how other leagues and tours have handled players who have come back,” Simon told BBC Sport.
“They come right back to the team and start playing.”
Italy’s Roberta Vinci – Sharapova’s opponent in her comeback match on Wednesday – disagrees with the decision to invite the five-time Grand Slam champion into the main draw.
World number eight Agnieszka Radwanska, who Sharapova might have met in the second round had she not lost to Ekaterina Makarova, and former world number one Caroline Wozniacki have also questioned her presence at the tournament.
In addition to Stuttgart, Sharapova has been granted wildcards by the organisers of the events in Madrid and Rome.
She does not have a world ranking after her points expired during her suspension and would need to reach the final in Stuttgart to be eligible for French Open qualifying.
The Daily Telegraph report that Sharapova is likely to be given a wildcard into qualifying at Roland Garros rather than the tournament’s main draw.
“She is starting at ground zero,” Simon added.
“It is going to affect her seedings in big tournaments so she’s still going to pay a penalty for a while.
“If you think about it from other leagues, most of them [bans] are half of a season or a full season. She’s had a year and a half.”
Former world number one Kim Clijsters echoed that view, saying that Sharapova “has done her time and her punishment”.
“I was disappointed and surprised when the news came out but, having been on both sides of the spectrum as a tournament director and as a player, I don’t think she needs to be punished more,” the Belgian told BBC Sport.
World number five Simona Halep said: “I cannot support what the tournament director did, but also I cannot judge: it is his decision.
“In my opinion, for kids and young players, it’s not OK to help with wildcards the players who were banned for doping.”
BBC Sport tennis correspondent Russell Fuller
Sharapova will need to set the alarm for her first day back at work. She has scheduled a 9.15 practice session on Centre Court: it will be the first time she has been allowed inside a tournament venue since her ban took effect.
Nine hours later, she will take on Roberta Vinci. The 34-year-old has lost six of her past seven matches, and taken just four games from Sharapova in the four sets they have played. This appears to be one of the best draws the five-time Grand Slam champion could have received.
It normally takes several months for players to return to their best after such a long break: concentration and decision-making often suffer. Sharapova will, though, be brimming with motivation as she has always maintained her error was purely an administrative one.
World number one Andy Murray will play Australian Bernard Tomic in the Barcelona Open on Wednesday.
The Briton, 29, accepted a late wild card for Barcelona after his third-round defeat by Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas in Monte Carlo on Thursday.
It will give top seed Murray more match time on clay before the French Open, which begins on 28 May.
British number two Kyle Edmund is out of the Barcelona Open after losing 6-1 6-4 to Austria’s Dominic Thiem.
Murray played his first professional match at the tournament in 2005, aged 17, where he lost to Czech Jan Hernych.
The Scot was based in Barcelona from the age of 15 and he visited the Barcelona academy, which has named one of its courts after him.
“I was here in Barcelona for two years and I loved it. I would say that they were two of the best years of my life,” Murray told the ATP website.
“It was the first time that I was away from my family home and even though it was hard, it was the first time I’d tasted independence”.
Murray won his first clay-court title in Munich in 2015 and beat Rafael Nadal the following week to win the Madrid Masters.
He won the Italian Open last year and reached the final of the French Open, where he lost to Novak Djokovic.
Legendary Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci has defended compatriot Ilie Nastase following his outburst during the Fed Cup win over Great Britain.
Romania captain Nastase swore at the umpire before abusing Johanna Konta and GB captain Anne Keothavong on Saturday.
He was banned from the tie and later handed a provisional suspension by the International Tennis Federation (ITF).
“Ilie is very patriotic and sometimes he says things that he doesn’t really mean,” said Comaneci.
“Everybody in Romania loves Ilie because he is Ilie.”
“Ilie is responsible for what comes out of his mouth, and I think it is important in sport that you keep the respect and good behaviour,” she added.
“He will have to deal with it [the consequences], but he can survive whatever happens to him. People make mistakes.”
Comaneci later posted on social media that she “cannot condone or defend” Nastate’s “ugly” remarks and warned that the 70-year-old must accept any punishment imposed by the ITF.
The ITF is investigating Nastase’s conduct in Constanta on Saturday, and also derogatory comments he made relating to the unborn child of 23-time Grand Slam singles champion.
The organisation said the provisional suspension meant Nastase “shall be denied access to any ITF event, including the Fed Cup”, pending further investigation into “a breach of the Fed Cup welfare policy”.
ITF president David Haggerty said: “One of the principles that is important is that we want a rigorous process that is fair.
“We will also hear Nastase’s side of the argument. It will be a thorough process conducted in an efficient manner. I do not think you will be hearing any final decisions in the next two weeks.”
Despite that, Nastase returned to the site as Britain were beaten 3-1 on Sunday.
He was later ordered to leave after entering the VIP restaurant, BBC Sport’s tennis correspondent Russell Fuller reported.
A spokesperson for the ITF told BBC Sport on Monday the organisation was aware of Nastase re-entering the venue on Sunday.
But, as the investigation is ongoing, no further comment will be made.
Nastase said on Monday: “I don’t regret it and they can send me to prison if they want – I don’t care.”
The Times reported on Monday that the All England Club has held initial discussions about Nastase’s behaviour and will not invite him into the Royal Box at Wimbledon this year.
An All England Club spokesman told the Press Association: “Invitations to the Royal Box are at the discretion of the chairman and committee of management who will take into account a range of factors, including any suspensions, when determining the guest list for the Championships.”
Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero came up just short on Monday in his first tour-level match since 2012, falling in doubles with countryman Pablo Carreno Busta 6-2, 5-7, 10-7 against Marcin Matkowski and Daniel Nestor at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.
The 37-year-old Ferrero, who last played in October 2012 in Valencia, was looking to replicate his semi-final doubles run in Valencia, which was his best career doubles result.
Matkowski/Nestor will face Frenchmen Fabrice Martin and Edouard Roger-Vasselin, who upset second seeds Jamie Murray/Bruno Soares 7-6(5), 2-6, 10-3. Philipp Petzschner and Alexander Peya got the better of #NextGenATP player Karen Khachanov and World No. 9 Dominic Thiem, 6-3, 6-3.
In Budapest, third seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah prevailed past Wesley Koolhof and Matwe Middelkoop 6-3, 6-3. Fourth seeds Brian Baker and Nikola Mektic beat the wild-card team of Marius Copil and Marton Fucsovics 7-5, 6-2.
The Hungarian team of Attila Balazs and Gabor Borsos kept the home crowd happy by beating Argentinians Andres Molteni and Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 6-2.
Bosnian Damir Dzumhur came back from a set down against Belgian Steve Darcis 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 to kick off day one of the inaugural Gazprom Hungarian Open on Monday. Dzumhur will face second-seeded Croatian Ivo Karlovic in round two. Karlovic won their prior FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting in three sets in Vienna last year.
Sixth seed Paolo Lorenzi advanced 6-4, 7-5 against Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan. Lorenzi won 74 per cent of his first-serve points and will meet Ukraine’s Sergiy Stakhovsky or German Florian Mayer in the second round.
Seventh seed Viktor Troicki swept Russian Evgeny Donskoy, the only man to beat Roger Federer this year, 6-1, 6-2 in 53 minutes. The 31-year-old Serbian faces Serbian qualifier Laslo Djere, who moved into the second round when #NextGenATP player Daniil Medvedev retired because of a left leg injury down 0-6, 5-5.
Lucky loser Yuichi Sugita of Japan made the most of his main draw showing at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Monday, knocking out 2004 champion Tommy Robredo 6-4, 6-3 to earn his first win of the season.
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Sugita saved six of seven break points to prevail past the 34-year-old Robredo, who received a wild card into the main draw. The 28-year-old Sugita will meet ninth seed Richard Gasquet in the second round.
#NextGenATP qualifier Casper Ruud will meet Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters finalist and 10th seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the second round after dismissing Radu Albot 6-2, 6-2 in 65 minutes. Ruud, the youngest player in the draw at 18, reached the semi-finals in Rio earlier this season and is currently sixth in the Emirates ATP Race To Milan, which will determine the 21-and-under field at the inaugural #NextGenATP Finals, to be held 7-11 November in Milan.
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Brit Kyle Edmund booked a second-round meeting against fourth seed Dominic Thiem with a 6-3, 6-4 victory against Frenchman Jeremy Chardy. Spanish veteran Nicolas Almagro beat Canadian qualifier Steven Diez 6-3, 6-4 and will battle #NextGenATP star Alexander Zverev in the second round for the first time.
Serena Williams says Ilie Nastase’s recent comments about her unborn child are “racist” and has given her backing to a full investigation.
Nastase, a former world number one, was heard speculating whether Williams’ child would be “chocolate with milk?”
“It disappoints me to know we live in a society where people like Ilie Nastase can make such racist comments,” Williams said in a statement.
Williams, 35, is due to give birth to her first child in the autumn.
“I have said it once and I’ll say it again, this world has come so far but yet we have so much further to go,” Williams added. “Yes, we have broken down so many barriers – however there are a plethora more to go.
“This or anything else will not stop me from pouring love, light and positivity into everything that I do. I will continue to take a lead and stand up for what’s right.”
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has launched an investigation into the comments made by 70-year-old Nastase, Romania’s Fed Cup captain, at a news conference before their tie with Great Britain in Constanta last week.
“I humbly thank the ITF for any consideration given to all the facts in this case. They will have my full support,” added Williams, who announced her engagement to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian in December.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion also included passages from the poem Still I Rise by American civil rights activist Maya Angelou in her statement.
“I am not afraid like you. You see, I am no coward. Does my sassiness upset you? Why are you beset with gloom? You may shoot me with your words… you may try to kill me with your hatefulness, but still like the air, I rise.”
WARNING: Some people may find the language below offensive
Nastase’s comments about Williams were followed by a foul-mouthed outburst during Romania’s Fed Cup win over Great Britain.
Nastase swore at the umpire before abusing Johanna Konta and GB captain Anne Keothavong – calling them both “a bitch” multiple times – leaving Konta reduced to tears.
Before the tie began, he also put his arm tightly around Keothavong and asked for her room number, in earshot of the watching media.
Williams referenced the incidents in Romania in her statement, saying Nastase had made “sexist comments against my peers”.
Nastase was banned from the tie and later handed a provisional suspension by the ITF.