Sharapova handed wild card for Rogers Cup

MONTREAL, Canada: Maria Sharapova’s comeback from a doping ban will include an appearance at the Rogers Cup in August after the former world number one was granted a wild card by the organisers of the Toronto tournament on Tuesday.

Sharapova returned to the court last month after serving a 15-month suspension when she tested positive for a banned substance at last year’s Australian Open and the Russian has so far been handed three wild cards to play WTA events.

The Russian reached the semi-finals of her first event back on the tour in Stuttgart but was surprisingly denied a wild card for the French Open with organisers uneasy about fast-tracking her into a tournament she has won twice.

Considered one of the biggest names in tennis, Sharapova will attempt to qualify for Wimbledon in July and has been invited to play in the Toronto event that serves as one of the main warm-up tournaments for the US Open.

Rogers Cup tournament director Karl Hale called Sharapova a “fan favorite” with the 30-year-old saying she was keen to compete at an event she last played in 2014.