ESPN.com · Oct 4, 2016
Sharapova ban reduced, can return in April
Maria Sharapova can start playing tennis again in April.
That was the ruling of the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Tuesday after hearing an appeal from Sharapova over her two-year doping ban. The court reduced the Russian tennis star's sentence to 15 months after determining that she had not been intentionally doping and acted with "no significant fault."
The CAS ruling means she will miss each of tennis' Grand Slams once through suspension and will be eligible to pursue her sixth major title starting with the 2017 French Open.