Five-time grand slam winner Maria Sharapova revealed that she had tested positive for a recently banned substance –meldonium — at January’s Australian Open. The 28-year-old Russian will be provisionally banned by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) on March 12. She faces up to a four-year ban.
 

Cheating *ss Maria Sharapova

Sharapova’s admission comes after allegations of state-sponsored doping were made against the All-Russia Athletic Federation (ARAF) last year following a report from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). It led to ARAF being suspended from international competition last year by the International Association of Athletics Federations and plunged their chances of competing at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics into jeopardy.
 
Meldonium, which Sharapova said she has taken since 2006 for health reasons, became a banned substance on 1 January 2016. The 2004 Wimbledon champion tested positive after losing to Williams in the Australian Open quarter-finals on 26 January.
 

Bigger Than Serena?

Sharapova has been the highest-earning female athlete in the world in each of the past 11 years, according to the Forbes list. Her career earnings from tennis alone amount to almost 28 million dollars. Sportswear company Nike said it was ending its association with her until investigations are complete, while Watch manufacturer Tag Heuer said it does not plan to extend her contract. Porsche has postponed planned activities with the player, and mineral water company Evian says it will closely follow the investigation.
 
I wonder what the relative reaction would be if this was Serena Williams and not Maria Sharapova? Granted, Serena has been imminently more successful on the court than Sharapova, but Sharapova has dominated off the court in earnings.
 
That’s right. Serena Williams will soon be the most decorated tennis player of all time, but she doesn’t earn what Sharapova earns in off the court endorsements. There has been much speculation as to why this is, but whatever that reason is, I wonder if it influences the lack of criticism Sharapova has faced over this embarrassing act? To Serena’s credit, she was measured in her response to the news though I’m sure she feels some type of way given the discrepancy between their on court performance and off court endorsements.
 

 
In their careers, Serena has won 19 of their 21 matches head to head. I wonder if all the people who have accuse Serena of doping over her physique ever wondered about Sharapova and all of the other players Serena has dominated over roughly the past two decades?

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