Australian Open: Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner on player reaction to doping controversies
Iga Swiatek says she is grateful for the support from her teammates since returning from a month-long suspension.
Five-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek tested positive for the heart drug trimetazidine (TMZ) in August, which was thought to be caused by contamination.
The ban was not made public until November, with Poland’s Swiatek saying she was “very embarrassed” at not being able to say why she missed three matches during that period.
Swiatek attributed her absence at the time to fatigue, personal reasons and a coaching change.
Four-time Roland Garros champion Swiatek said she considered announcing her absence prematurely but felt it would be “easier to tell the whole story when it’s done”.
Speaking at a press conference at the Australian Open, Swiatek said: “This is probably the worst moment of my life.
“The fact that I had no control over the whole situation and no chance of avoiding it made it worse because I’m a bit of a control freak.
“The feeling that everything I built could be taken away so quickly because of things you can’t control is very crazy and very abstract to me.”
Swiatek competed in the WTA Year-End Finals and the Billie Jean Gold Cup final after the provisional ban was lifted but before the ban was announced.
The 23-year-old man had previously Said she was “afraid” of a hostile reaction from her teammates.
“The girls are great in the locker room. They’re really supportive,” Swiatek said.
“Most of them come to me. They say, ‘How can we avoid this? Is there any way we can be more careful?’
“They’re worried it could happen to them too.
“I’m really grateful because it made me feel better when I came back and I didn’t know what to expect.”
Swiatek begins her Australian Open campaign against Czech Katrina Siniakova, which begins on Sunday.
