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Two time Grand Slam winner Halep doping ban reduced

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Double Grand Slam champion Simona Halep has had her  four-year ban for doping reduced to nine months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The decision means former world number one Halep, 32, can return to tennis immediately, possibly as soon as the Miami Open later this month.

The backdated nine-month ban expired on 6 July, 2023.

Halep’s test results dated from 29 August, 2022  during the US Open – when she gave a positive sample for roxadustat

Her ranking points and prize money in this period, therefore remain disqualified.

Halep, won the 2018 French Open and Wimbledon in 2019, and has always maintained her innocence after being charged with two separate doping offences.

Whilst  her case was partially upheld by Cas, it also ruled  that “on the balance of probabilities”  Halep had not taken roxadustat intentionally.

The Romanian had faced two charges: one for testing positive for roxadustat and another for irregularities in her athlete biological passport and was originally banned until October 2026,.

Roxadustat is anti-anaemia drug which stimulates the production of red blood cells in the body.

Had the original decision been upheld Halep feared that would end her career.

Cas said it was “not comfortably satisfied” Halep had committed an offence and the panel “therefore dismissed that charge”.

Halep, who has earned £32.2m in career prize money, is at liberty to return to the WTA Tour after the nine-month ban was backdated.

In response to the ruling, Halep hit out at what she called “scandalous accusations”.

“My faith in the process was tested by the scandalous accusations that were levelled against me, and by the seemingly unlimited resources that were aligned against me,”

“I cannot wait to return to the tour.”

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), which was responsible for testing within the sport and brought the investigation, said it “respected” the decision.

Main photo:- Simona Halep playing in the US Open – by Roger Parker International Sports Fotos Ltd

The Australian Open

Wimbledon goes modern with electronic reviews

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Wimbledon will bow to the high-tech future by introducing limited electronic reviews of line calls on major courts at the Championships, the club revealed on Saturday.

The All England Club will allow the technology on showcourts including Centre Court, No. 1 and four others. During controversial moments, competitors will be allowed to ask the chair umpire for a review of the point in question.

The wizardry is coming late to Wimbledon having been used at the US Open since 2023 and later adapted by the Australian Open. Roland Garros relies on marks in its clay surface to determine line calls.

Under the rules, players can ask for the review any number of times, with electronic line-calling now in effect at the grass-court major for a second year after the 2025 elimination of human line judges.

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ATP

Sinner claims full house with Indian Wells win

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World No. 2 Jannik Sinner became the youngest man to complete the full set of hard-court victories by beating Daniil Medvedev 7-6 (8) 7-6 (7) in the searing heat of Indian Wells.

The 24 year old Italian, didn’t face a break point during the final nor did he drop a set on his way to claiming his first title of the year and his 25th overall.

Sinner has won both hard court Grand Slams, with victories at the Australian Open in 2024 and 2025 and at the US Open in 2024.

In addition he has lifted all six Masters 1000 series hard court titles – adding the Indian Wells title to victories in Miami, Toronto, Cincinnati, Shanghai and Paris plus the season-ending ATP Finals.

Only Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer have achieved the same feat.

Main photo:- Jannik Sinner lifts Indian Wells Trophy – by ATPTour.com

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Indian wells

Her way or the highway for Raducanu on court

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Emma Raducanu remained defiant at the start of the Indian Wells Masters that if she does hire a new coach, it might not be to try and shape her game.

The Brit who won the 2021 US Open as a qualifier and then suffered a four-year drop in form due to injury, is in the market for a mentor – but only if he or she conforms to her vision for her tennis.

“Right now, it’s more about bringing my instincts back out, getting back in touch with myself,” the 23-year-old told the BBC.  “I have had a lot of people telling me what to do, how to play, and it hasn’t necessarily fit.

“So I want to come back to my natural way of playing. That takes time to relearn because that’s something that has been coached out of me a little bit.

“I don’t necessarily want to have one coach in the role because anyone I bring in is straight away going to be scrutinised – even if it’s a trial.

“I might feel the pressure to stick with them, even if it’s not necessarily the right decision.

“I would love to have a coach that works well, but I don’t think it’s necessarily going to be easy to find one person and they are going to check every box.”

Raducanu reached a WTA fiak in early February after exiting in the Australian Open second round. She lost both matches she played last month in the Gulf, at Doha and Dubai.

She is entering the first Masters of the season with former coach Mark Petchey filling in ad hoc in between his TV broadcast commentating duties.

But that solution is temporary. “With Mark I knew he’d be in Indian Wells so I asked him to come out a few days earlier just to do some stuff with me on the court and try to feel back in a better way with my game,” the No. 24 said.

“At the start of the year I didn’t feel too good but the last few days I’ve been feeling better. 

“It’s not something that has really been organised going forward but I knew he would be here and it’s been great, I always love being on court with him.”

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