TENNIS : MARIA SHARAPOVA BACK IN COURT AFTER BAN REDUCED ; PREPARES FOR FRENCH OPEN !

TENNIS : MARIA SHARAPOVA BACK IN COURT AFTER REDUCED BAN ; PREPARES FOR FRENCH OPEN !

Tennis Star Maria Sharapova is now back in action, on court, barely a week after her controversial doping ban reduction.

But don't get too excited - or angry - depending on what side of the fence your are on.

Sharapova saw action just for a charity. A star-studded charity. She will be officially allowed to play professional tennis by April 2017 - very much in time for the French Open.

Sharapova was handed down a two-year suspension following her failed drug test at the Australian Open in January 2016. She admitted taking a drug, an acknowledged performance enhancer, for at least 10 years in her career.

For medical reasons, she claimed.

The drug was just added in the list of banned substances by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in January 2016.

Sharapova filed an appeal and won, reducing her suspension from 2 years to 15 months.

And suddenly, Sharapova - the richest female athlete in the world - is again hitting the headlines.

She joined famous celebrities, like herself, at the WTT (World Team Tennis) Charity in Las Vegas.

Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova, John McEnroe, Andy Roddick, Elton John, Mike Tyson, and others.

The charity event is in support to the Elton John AIDS Foundation, founded by Music Legend Sir Elton John.

A week on from her drugs ban being reduced, @MariaSharapova is back in the game with some famous faces. https://t.co/yYzojgF6qc
— CNN Sport (@cnnsport) October 11, 2016

A fun night with @BillieJeanKing and #WTTSmashHits pic.twitter.com/7dJEQwdnAb
— Maria Sharapova (@MariaSharapova) October 11, 2016

Some images from last night at #WTTSmashHits 🎾 pic.twitter.com/mahHUTaiFl
— Maria Sharapova (@MariaSharapova) October 11, 2016

.@andyroddick took charge of a #WTTSmashHits selfie with the all-star cast at @CaesarsPalace. Here is the result! pic.twitter.com/2vxzd1qY3K
— Mylan WTT (@WorldTeamTennis) October 11, 2016

Sharapova & McEnroe win 5-3 to force Extended Play. Team Elton still up 18-13 vs Team Billie Jean. #WTTSmashHits pic.twitter.com/0AwqhDEByl
— Mylan WTT (@WorldTeamTennis) October 11, 2016

#WTTSmashHits raises over $600k for @ejaforg. Thx to all, especially players, sponsors, donors, volunteers & fans! https://t.co/yZ7A8XA1sl pic.twitter.com/O5F7hqwHbl
— Mylan WTT (@WorldTeamTennis) October 11, 2016

Oh to be a fly on the wall during this exchange. (CC: @MardyFish, @andyroddick & @eltonofficial) #WTTSmashHits pic.twitter.com/Mksh8XoEjX
— Mylan WTT (@WorldTeamTennis) October 11, 2016

Caption this!! 🙈
A photo posted by Maria Sharapova (@mariasharapova) on Oct 11, 2016 at 8:58am PDT

@mariasharapova poses with @billiejeanking after making #WTTSmashHits debut for Team Billie Jean at @CaesarsPalace in #lasvegas. #mariasharapova #billiejeanking #caesarspalace
A photo posted by Mylan World TeamTennis (@worldteamtennis) on Oct 10, 2016 at 11:10pm PDT

@MariaSharapova talks about Monday's upcoming #WTTSmashHits debut at @CaesarsPalace, @BillieJeanKing & the chance to meet @EltonJohn! #Sharapova greeted fans during a @Sugarpova appearance earlier today in #HendersonNevada. Tickets: http://bit.ly/2a2vene #charitytennis #mariasharapova #thesweetfactory #soundbite #caesarspalace
A video posted by Mylan World TeamTennis (@worldteamtennis) on Oct 10, 2016 at 12:34am PDT

@mariasharapova spoke with us about tomorrow's #WTTSmashHits match at @CaesarsPalace and meeting fans during @sugarpova appearance in #hendersonnevada. Hear from Maria here soon! #mariasharapova #sugarpova
A photo posted by Mylan World TeamTennis (@worldteamtennis) on Oct 9, 2016 at 9:50pm PDT

#AndyRoddick took charge of a #WTTSmashHits selfie with our all-star cast at @CaesarsPalace. Here is the result! #johnmcenroe #eltonjohn #markphilippoussis #mariasharapova #martinanavratilova #liezelhuber #taylorjohnson #mardyfish
A photo posted by Mylan World TeamTennis (@worldteamtennis) on Oct 10, 2016 at 7:04pm PDT