Maria Sharapova's failed drug test may not merit a lengthy suspension, but it still could wipe out her 2016 season.
Shamil Tarpishchev, president of the Russian tennis federation, speculated that the tennis player's disciplinary hearing for her positive test for meldonium could take place in June, according to The Associated Press via USA Today Sports.
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Tarpishchev said to the state Tass news agency that "the hearings could be put off until June," adding that was "not official information, but my opinion." The AP reported.
If he's right, Sharapova would be in danger of missing all the remaining important tournaments of 2016, according to Fox Sports.
"Let's say the hearing is in the middle of June," Fox Sports reported. "At that point, Sharapova will have already missed the French Open. The case shouldn't take long, but the decision could -- waits for sanctions have ranged from days to weeks (and in some rare cases, months). If no verdict is handed down before June 29, Sharapova misses Wimbledon, too. The Olympic begin Aug. 5, which is a little less than seven months after the positive test."
By that time, Sharapova's ranking is speculated to be near No. 100, Fox Sports added.
Fox Sports predicted that any suspension imposed would have a start date of the day she actually failed the test, which was in late January. She hasn't played in any tournaments since the Australian Open, where she failed the test, because of an injured forearm.
However, Sharapova wasn't officially suspended until March 12. Even if an imposed suspension were backdated to that date, a six-month penalty would end on Sept. 12, which would be after the conclusion of the U.S. Open.
The WTA has come out publicly in support of Sharapova, stating it believes she made an honest mistake by not reading the World Anti-Doping Agency's updated list of banned substances to include meldonium in 2016.
It's the International Tennis Federation that will decide Sharapova's punishment. By Tarpishschev's hearing date estimate, she will miss the French Open and is virtually guaranteed to miss Wimbledon.
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