Proof exists of tennis life after drug bans

On Wednesday, the International Tennis Federation announced that Maria Sharapova will be suspended for two years, backdating to her failed drug test in January for meldonium. The Russian will be eligible to compete on January 26, 2018, when she will be 31 years old. Her ranking points and prize money from her quarterfinal run in Melbourne are to be forfeited.

Sharapova said she will "immediately appeal" the ban.

While the news is certainly bleak, some proof exits of post-ban success:

1

Suspension: 6 months

Ranking before suspension: No. 90

Ranking after suspension: No. 103

The Czech tested positive for sibutramine in October of 2012 at the Luxembourg Open. Then 26, Strycova claimed the synthetic stimulant was ingested accidentally from the weight-loss supplement Acai Berry Thin. The ITF reduced her ban, saying that she bore no significant fault.

Since then the 30-year-old has climbed up to No. 30, reaching two WTA finals and making it to the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 2014.

2

Suspension: 1 year

Ranking before suspension: No. 53

Ranking after suspension: No. 847

Troicki never technically failed a drug test. In 2013 he lost in the first round of Monte Carlo and asked to have a routine blood test postponed one day since he wasn’t feeling well. Days later he got an email from the ITF saying he faced a two-year ban despite it coming back negative.

He appealed the suspension, claiming the ITF officer let him wait a day, but the officer denied it. Even so, he sat out 12 months. He’s now back to No. 21.

3

Suspension: 2 years

Ranking before suspension: No. 18

Ranking after suspension: N/A (Doubles No. 1)

This case was nearly incomprehensible. Hingis was the darling of tennis after becoming the youngest-ever No. 1 at 16. But in 2007, at the age of 27, she tested positive for cocaine at Wimbledon. Instead of fighting back, Hingis simply maintained her innocence throughout the media frenzy and abruptly retired, effectively rendering her ban irrelevant.

She would return six years later as a doubles specialist, becoming No. 1 in doubles, winning her 12th Grand Slam doubles title in Australia this year and compiling a 41-match winning streak (all with Sania Mirza).

4

Suspension: 4 months

Ranking before suspension: No. 12

Ranking after suspension: No. 41

In 2013, the Croat was forced to serve a reduced suspension of four months. Cilic tested positive for nikethamide, a stimulant that enhances respiration. He said it was from a packet of legal glucose tablets that he normally takes, but on this occasion the packet was purchased in Monte Carlo and contained different ingredients unbeknownst to him.

Cilic could have faced a two-year ban, but the ITF concluded that he didn’t intend to boost his performance. He won his first major at the U.S. Open in 2014, and his ranking has risen back to No. 13.

5

Suspension: 2 years

Ranking before suspension: No. 36

Ranking after suspension: 0

In 2005, the Bulgarian burst onto the scene at 16. She upset Venus Williams on her way to the Roland Garros quarterfinals and reached a high of No. 35. But the Karatantcheva fairy tale came to a halt when a failed drug test in Paris showed nandrolene, an anabolic steroid. She claimed it was due to a pregnancy, but a pregnancy test came back negative, and the two-year ban stood.

Karatantcheva returned in 2008. While she hasn’t enjoyed Grand Slam success or a Top 50 ranking since the suspension, she has won three ITF titles and reached a couple of WTA semifinals. She is currently ranked No. 206.

6

Suspension: 2.5 months

Ranking before suspension: No. 23

Ranking after suspension: No. 47

Gasquet’s brush with the ITF law became famously known as the “Cocaine Kiss.” After withdrawing from Miami in 2009 with a shoulder injury, he tested positive for cocaine. The then-23-year-old claimed the trace amount in his system was due to kissing a woman named Pamela at a Miami music festival. What could have been two years ended up being far less because the ITF decided he was not significantly at fault.

Given the shortness of the suspension, the gossip eventually dissipated, while his ranking has enjoyed a steady boost into the Top 10.