Maria Sharapova has received another wild card, this time for the Aegon Classic in Birmingham, according to a report in The Times on Tuesday. Great Britain’s Lawn Tennis Association gave the former World No 1 the wild card to play in the grass court event next month, reported Reuters.
Sharapova made her return to competitive tennis after a 15-month doping suspension last month. But her current ranking of 258 – achieved after a strong showing in her first tournament at the Stuttgart Grand Prix – was too low to get a direct entry. Now, the organisers are looking to give her one of the four available wild cards, the report continued.
The 30-year-old has won the Birmingham event back in 2005 and her last appearance there was in 2010.
“We are in the process of deciding which players will receive wild cards for our summer season grass-court tournaments,” an LTA spokesman was quoted as saying by The Times.
The Aegon Classic will be held from June 17-25 at the Edgbaston Priory Club ahead of the Wimbledon, starting on July 3.
Sharapova, who had reached the semi-finals in Stuttgart, lost to Eugenie Bouchard in the second round of the Madrid Open on Monday. She has also received wild cards to play in Rome, but is yet to know whether she will get them for the two upcoming Grand Slams – Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
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