Maria Sharapova's first opponent after her 15-month doping suspension says the Russian should not have been granted a wild card for the Porsche Grand Prix or upcoming tournaments.
Roberta Vinci, who will face Sharapova in a highly anticipated first-round match late Wednesday, does "not agree" with organisers giving Sharapova a free passage into the main draw of their events.
"She is a great player and I have nothing against her. She paid for her mistakes," Vinci said on Monday. "She can return to play but without any wild cards, without any help."
Sharapova's suspension for using heart drug meldonium after it was banned at the beginning of 2016, ends on Wednesday, just in time to enter the opening round of the indoor clay tournament she won three times in a row from 2012-14.
Vinci joined the likes of Caroline Wozniacki, Dominika Cibulkova, Agnieszka Radwanska, and Angelique Kerber in speaking out against wild cards for players who return from a doping suspension. "I know (Sharapova) is important for the tennis, for the WTA, for everything," Vinci said. "She is a great person, a great player, a great champion, but this is my opinion."
The 36th-ranked Vinci, who reached a career high 10th a year ago, would try to forget about the wild-card debate when stepping on court on Wednesday.
Vinci expected "a lot of the crowd on Wednesday to be (cheering) for her. But I don't know about the players. A lot of players will agree with me on the wild card."
Vinci lost all four sets and scored only four games in total during her two previous matches against Sharapova, but those were played on hard-court, 10 and five years ago, respectively.