Russian tennis champion Maria Sharapova's agent Max Eisenbud has stated that her 15-month suspension for failing a drug test is likely to extend her career all the way to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
It has been almost a year since Sharapova rocked the tennis world by announcing that she had tested positive for meldonium, an over-the-counter heart medication.
She was then awarded the suspension which meant Sharapova couldn't play at the last Olympics in Rio in August.
Sharapova said she hadn't realized the drug -- which she had taken for more than a decade for various health issues -- had been put on the 2016 prohibited list.
"If (the suspension) didn't happen, this probably would have been her last year. I think she'll play through Tokyo if healthy,” Eisenbud told CNN.
Meanwhile, Sharapova needs wildcards to play at top-level professional events since he has no ranking due to her inactivity.
Her agent asserts that the interest in Sharapova has not died down as he has been receiving continuous calls about her availability to play. "Every WTA tournament called me, every single one," claimed Eisenbud.
However, the new head of the French tennis federation, Bernard Giudicelli, hinted this month that the French Open may bypass Sharapova.
Sharapova has been back in the grind and sweating it out on the courts, while documenting her comeback on Twitter.