Maria Sharapova lost in the semi-finals of Stuttgart’s WTA tournament on Saturday, her comeback from a 15-month doping ban ending in a 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 defeat to Kristina Mladenovic.
Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam winner, lost a titanic match over two hours, 38 minutes as she exited her first tournament back from a ban after testing positive for meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open.