Former World No. 1 Maria Sharapova recently made her comeback to competitive tennis after serving out a 15-month ban for the use of meldonium, and received a wildcard to the ongoing Madrid Masters last week.
Several players have spoken out on Sharapova being awarded wildcards to various tournaments, with a number of former and current top-10 players speaking out against the Russian ace.
Andy Murray has been one of Sharapova’s most high-profile critics, and most recently questioned the British Lawn Tennis Association for granting the Russian a wildcard to the Aegon Classic, played on grass. French ace Jo-Wilfried Tsonga described Sharapova’s wildcards as “handing candy to a child that has made a mistake,” but perhaps her most vocal critic to date has been Canadian former Wimbledon finalist Eugenie Bouchard.
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23-year-old Bouchard, who is enjoying a spate of strong wins following a dry patch in her career, described Sharapova as a “cheater” who “does not deserve to continue playing the sport.” Given that the Canadian had called for a lifetime ban for Sharapova, the two played out what could only be described as a grudge match, with Bouchard, who once considered Sharapova one of her tennis idols, winning in three sets before going on to beat former – and soon to be- world No. 1 Angelique Kerber in straight sets, with Kerber retiring 0-5 down in the second set.
Sharapova did not respond significantly to Bouchard except to say “well played” to her victorious rival after the match. However, the Russian star lashed out subtly on social media sharing platform Twitter, making a reference to her and Bouchard.
Called ‘Unstoppable: My Life So Far’, the Russian’s memoir details her life over the past year and her ban from the sport, with Twitter user @thedrivevolley parodying the cover of the book to read “Insufferable: My Life So Far” and featuring Bouchard on the cover. Sharapova ‘liked’ the tweet, which mocked her verbose competitor and critic.
Although the two were once friends, with Bouchard describing Sharapova as her idol in the past, we suppose there is no love lost between the two now.
