Maria Sharapova marked her return from a 15-month doping ban on Wednesday with a rusty 7-5, 6-3 win over Roberta Vinci in Stuttgart, describing victory as the &quot;best feeling in the world&quot;.

Sharapova, the former world number one and five-time Grand Slam champion, brushed off a nervous start to eventually claim a convincing win on her controversial comeback having tested positive for meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open.

&quot;It&#39;s the best feeling in the world to walk out (on court), it&#39;s been a stage of mine since I was a young girl and it was very special,&quot; said Sharapova who celebrated her win with a succession of fist pumps and a broad smile before blowing kisses to all corners of the Porsche Arena.

&quot;I have been waiting for this a long time.&quot;

Sharapova was given a wildcard to play in Stuttgart tournament, where she has been champion three times, a move which drew a barrage of criticsm from rivals who believed she was receiving preferential treatment.

She fired 39 winners and 11 aces past 34-year-old Vinci, one of many to have voiced her concerns over the Russian benefitting from wildcards.&nbsp;

After receiving warm applause from the crowd, which included one fan who held up a Russian flag bearing the words &#39;Welcome back Maria, Sharapova, dressed in an orange top and lilac-coloured dress, initially struggled.

She quickly found herself 2-0 down before she broke back to level at 2-0.

As was to be expected after her long break, Sharapova laboured to find her shots and Vinci profited from several mistakes.

But the 30-year-old Russian started to move her Italian opponent around the court and found her range with a pair of aces.

Sharapova finally broke the Italian in the 11th game and then held her service, converting her second set point in exactly an hour.

Vinci had lost to Sharapova in both their previous meetings and the Italian trailed from 2-0 down in the second set on Wednesday.

Sharapova quickly moved to 5-3 ahead up with an ace and extended her domination in the following game, racing into a 40-0 lead and converted her first match point for victory in one hour, 45 minutes.

&quot;I&#39;ve been doing this for so long and this was my first match for a while, so when you are in the moment, you block everything else out,&quot; said Sharapova.

&quot;I&#39;m competitive by nature, even when things aren&#39;t working out.

&quot;That&#39;s when I am at my best, when I forget about everything, just be me and just compete.&quot;

Sharapova will now play fellow Russian Ekaterina Makarova in Thursday&#39;s second-round.

&quot;It&#39;s going to be tough, but every match I play now is important for me,&quot; she said.

&quot;It&#39;s important to just play, it&#39;s a journey and it officially starts for me today and I am looking forward to playing as many matches as I can.&quot;

(AFP)

The former world number one scored a 7-5, 6-3 win over Roberta Vinci in Stuttgart

Maria Sharapova marked her return from a 15-month doping ban on Wednesday with a rusty 7-5, 6-3 win over Roberta Vinci in Stuttgart, describing victory as the "best feeling in the world". Sharapova, the former world number one and five-time Grand Slam champion, brushed off a nervous start to eventually claim a convincing win on her controversial comeback having tested positive for meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open. "It's the best feeling in the world to walk out (on court), it's been a stage of mine since I was a young girl and it was very special," said Sharapova who celebrated her win with a succession of fist pumps and a broad smile before blowing kisses to all corners of the Porsche Arena. "I have been waiting for this a long time." Sharapova was given a wildcard to play in Stuttgart tournament, where she has been champion three times, a move which drew a barrage of criticsm from rivals who believed she was receiving preferential treatment. She fired 39 winners and 11 aces past 34-year-old Vinci, one of many to have voiced her concerns over the Russian benefitting from wildcards. After receiving warm applause from the crowd, which included one fan who held up a Russian flag bearing the words 'Welcome back Maria, Sharapova, dressed in an orange top and lilac-coloured dress, initially struggled. She quickly found herself 2-0 down before she broke back to level at 2-0. As was to be expected after her long break, Sharapova laboured to find her shots and Vinci profited from several mistakes. But the 30-year-old Russian started to move her Italian opponent around the court and found her range with a pair of aces. Sharapova finally broke the Italian in the 11th game and then held her service, converting her second set point in exactly an hour. Vinci had lost to Sharapova in both their previous meetings and the Italian trailed from 2-0 down in the second set on Wednesday. Sharapova quickly moved to 5-3 ahead up with an ace and extended her domination in the following game, racing into a 40-0 lead and converted her first match point for victory in one hour, 45 minutes. "I've been doing this for so long and this was my first match for a while, so when you are in the moment, you block everything else out," said Sharapova. "I'm competitive by nature, even when things aren't working out. "That's when I am at my best, when I forget about everything, just be me and just compete." Sharapova will now play fellow Russian Ekaterina Makarova in Thursday's second-round. "It's going to be tough, but every match I play now is important for me," she said. "It's important to just play, it's a journey and it officially starts for me today and I am looking forward to playing as many matches as I can." (AFP)

Sharapova wins first match after return from doping ban

Five-times grand slam champion Maria Sharapova has lodged an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) seeking to have her two-year doping ban dismissed or reduced.&nbsp; 
 
The 29-year-old Russian was banned by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) earlier this month following a positive test for the banned drug meldonium during January&#39;s Australian Open. 
 
&quot;In her appeal to the CAS, Ms Sharapova seeks the annulment of the Tribunal&rsquo;s decision to sanction her with a two-year period of ineligibility further to an anti-doping rule violation,&quot; sport&#39;s highest tribunal said in a statement. &quot;Ms Sharapova submits that the period of ineligibility should be eliminated, or in the alternative, reduced.&quot; 
 
The statement added that her case had been expedited and a ruling would be made by July 18 at the latest, which means Sharapova still harbours hopes of competing at the Rio Olympics in August provided her ban is reduced to time already served. 
 
The former world number one was named in Russia&#39;s official entry list for the Olympics. 
 
Sharapova had called the ITF&#39;s ruling &quot;unfairly harsh&quot; as an independent tribunal had found that she had not intentionally violated anti-doping rules. 
 
Meldonium was added to WADA&#39;s list of banned substances at the start of the year after mounting evidence that it boosted blood flow and enhanced athletic performance. 
 
The World Anti-Doping Agency said in a statement on Tuesday that it reviewed the tribunal&#39;s decision and confirmed it would not be using its independent right to appeal to CAS. 
 
Since January, about 180 athletes have tested positive for the drug, which is manufactured in Latvia and common throughout eastern Europe. 
 
Sharapova stunned the sporting world in March when she announced that she had tested positive for meldonium, a component of a product named Mildronate which she has taken since 2006 for health issues. 
(Reuters)

"Unfairly harsh" ruling contested, as independent tribunal says drug was taken accidentally

Five-times grand slam champion Maria Sharapova has lodged an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) seeking to have her two-year doping ban dismissed or reduced. The 29-year-old Russian was banned by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) earlier this month following a positive test for the banned drug meldonium during January's Australian Open. "In her appeal to the CAS, Ms Sharapova seeks the annulment of the Tribunal’s decision to sanction her with a two-year period of ineligibility further to an anti-doping rule violation," sport's highest tribunal said in a statement. "Ms Sharapova submits that the period of ineligibility should be eliminated, or in the alternative, reduced." The statement added that her case had been expedited and a ruling would be made by July 18 at the latest, which means Sharapova still harbours hopes of competing at the Rio Olympics in August provided her ban is reduced to time already served. The former world number one was named in Russia's official entry list for the Olympics. Sharapova had called the ITF's ruling "unfairly harsh" as an independent tribunal had found that she had not intentionally violated anti-doping rules. Meldonium was added to WADA's list of banned substances at the start of the year after mounting evidence that it boosted blood flow and enhanced athletic performance. The World Anti-Doping Agency said in a statement on Tuesday that it reviewed the tribunal's decision and confirmed it would not be using its independent right to appeal to CAS. Since January, about 180 athletes have tested positive for the drug, which is manufactured in Latvia and common throughout eastern Europe. Sharapova stunned the sporting world in March when she announced that she had tested positive for meldonium, a component of a product named Mildronate which she has taken since 2006 for health issues. (Reuters)

Sharapova appeals her two-year doping ban in quest to be eligible for the Rio Olympics

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Sharapova wins first match after return from doping ban

Sharapova appeals her two-year doping ban in quest to be eligible for the Rio Olympics