Iga Swiatek admitted that she fears a more negative reaction to the doping ban and sees no reason for the issue to continue.
The Polish player was banned for a month last November after he tested positive for the drug trimetazidine, which the International Tennis Integrity Agency acknowledged was due to contamination of a medication Swiatek was taking to help combat jet lag.
It was the second high-profile doping case to hit the sport in a matter of months after world number one Jannik Sinner failed two tests, for which he was not banned.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has appealed that decision and Sinner still faces the risk of a ban, but Swiatek does not expect a similar outcome in her situation.
She was briefly suspended, causing her to miss three tournaments in the fall, before completing the ban during the off-season once her punishment was announced.
Speaking about the matter for the first time at a press conference ahead of the United Cup in Australia – the first tournament of the new season – Swiatek said of the possibility of an appeal to the World Anti-Doping Agency: “Well, I don’t think there is any reason, because I haven’t played three tournaments.
“I was suspended for a long time and lost the top spot in the world rankings because of it. I also know how things went, I provided all the evidence I could and, frankly, there is not much more I can do.”
He added: “So I do not expect an appeal, but I have no influence on what will happen.”
Like Sinner, Swiatek’s short temporary ban was not announced until after the outcome of the case was determined, with the 23-year-old attributing her absence from the three tournaments to personal matters and a change of coach.
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This led to further accusations of a two-tier system, with star names being given preferential treatment, something which the ITF and tennis authorities strongly deny.
“I can say from the processes I went through — and how they treated me from the beginning — that it seemed fair to me,” Swiatek said.
“I am confident that the ITIA, in any case they do, will treat every player the same and fairly.”
Swiatek posted a long video on social media explaining the case immediately after the result was announced.
Regarding the reaction, she said: “I think their response was more positive than I thought. I think people, most of them, understand, and those who read the documents and understand how the system works, know that I had nothing wrong and had no influence on what was going on.”
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“I haven’t been online much. I’m trying to get on with my life and focus on different things, focus on preparing for the season and on tennis, because that’s the best thing you can do after a situation like this. .
“But overall, the reaction in Poland was very supportive, because that’s mostly what I read. I really, really appreciated it, because even when I missed the China tour and no one knew why, it wasn’t that easy.”
“So, after information about my case was released, I was afraid that most people would turn their backs on me. But I felt supported and that’s great.
He added: “Obviously there’s going to be some negative comments and you’re not going to avoid that. I just have to accept that and I don’t really care about those comments.”
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