Doping fears haunt Raducanu

MELBOURNE, Australia (AFP) — Doping fears prevented former US Open champion Emma Raducanu from treating insect bites on the eve of the Australian Open, she said, with players increasingly wary about ingesting contaminated substances.

The British player, who faces a tough first round match against Russian 26th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova, was speaking in the wake of high-profile doping cases involving Iga Swiatak and Jannik Sinner.

“I would say all of us are probably quite sensitive to what we take on board, what we use,” said the 22-year-old, recalling an incident on Friday.

“I got really badly bitten by, I don’t know what, like ants, mosquitoes, something. I’m allergic, I guess.”

“They flared up and swelled up really a lot. Someone was giving me this antiseptic spray, natural, to try to ease the bites.”

“I didn’t want to take it. I didn’t want to spray it. I was, like, I’m just going to tough it out because I don’t want to risk it.”

Five-time Grand Slam winner Swiatek’s reputation was rocked last year when it was revealed she tested positive for a banned heart medication.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted that the violation was not intentional, and the Polish star escaped with a one-month sanction.

Her case followed defending Australian Open champion Sinner twice testing positive for traces of the steroid clostebol in March.

He was also exonerated by the ITIA, which accepted his explanation that the drug entered his system when his physio used a spray containing it to treat a cut.

The World Anti-Doping Agency appealed his case, which will be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on 16 to 17 April.

“It’s obviously a concern on our mind,” said Raducanu about fears of inadvertently ingesting a contaminated substance.

“We’re all in the same boat. I think it’s just how we manage as best as we can the controllables.”

“If something out of our control happens, then it’s going to be a bit of a struggle to try and prove.”