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On Tennis: Sharapova’s Case Shows How Unforced Errors Hurt Cleanup Efforts

With her doping suspension reduced to 15 months, from two years, Maria Sharapova and her legal team sounded triumphant on Tuesday.

But the truth is that nobody should be pumping a fist and bellowing, “Come on!” when it comes to the Sharapova case. None of the major players ended up winners.

Not the World Anti-Doping Agency, which botched the introduction of meldonium to its banned list this year, undermining faith in the system at a moment when faith is imperative.

Not Sharapova, who made errors in judgment and will still miss more than a year of competitive tennis and take a major financial hit for what the Court of Arbitration for Sport concluded on Tuesday was essentially an administrative oversight.