Sharapova begins re-entry tennis Vegas

It was Day 6 of the Maria Sharapova Redemption Tour when the suspended Russian tennis star pulled into Las Vegas on Monday night.

In contrast to her carefully orchestrated media blitz and sharp back-and-forth with the International Tennis Federation last week after learning her suspension had been reduced from 24 to 15 months, the edge in Sharapova’s voice was gone here.

The World TeamTennis Smash Hits charity event, hosted annually by Billie Jean King and Sir Elton John to benefit John’s AIDS Foundation was the perfect landing spot for Sharapova.

Maria Sharapova’s doping suspension was reduced from two years to 15 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Tuesday.

Skeptics of tennis’ drug-testing program (or lack thereof), and the anti-doping movement in general, got a lot more to chew on Tuesday after CAS reduced Maria Sharapova’s two-year ban.

When Sharapova left the court after playing women’s doubles and that mixed doubles match, John tenderly cupped a hand on each side of her face and thanked her for coming.

With two limos waiting just beyond the grandstands to whisk everyone who had played off into the Vegas night, Sharapova was the last player to leave the court.

Maria Sharapova smiles during the World TeamTennis Smash Hits charity tennis event benefiting the Elton John AIDS Foundation on Monday.

But CAS disagreed Sharapova was actively seeking performance enhancement and also agreed with the contention by Sharapova’s lawyer that the ITF could have done better job informing its athletes of the new banned list.

King said Monday that when she asked Sharapova how she had been spending her long layoff, Sharapova told her about new workouts — boxing, spin classes, beach training — she had been doing these past few months.