Maria Sharapova hits back at Andy Murray over doping comments

Sharapova, who lost in the fourth round of the US Open in her comeback Grand Slam, has just released a book called ‘Unstoppable, My Life So Far’ which deals with her 15-month absence from the game due to a doping offence.

Bouchard famously said that Sharapova should not have been allowed to return to the sport after “cheating”, a charge which Sharapova flatly denies as she says she continued taking meldonium by mistake, unaware that it had become a banned substance before she tested positive in the 2016 Australian Open.

"I think those are comments not based on facts, and therefore I don't take them into consideration," she told the BBC.

But British number one Murray also said in March last year: "I read that 55 athletes have failed tests for that substance since 1 January. You just don’t expect high level athletes at the top of many sports to have heart conditions."

The BBC reports that when Murray’s comments were brought up, Sharapova replied: