Lausanne: Marin Cilic's ban for doping was reduced from a "too severe" nine months to four on Friday, clearing him play at the Paris Masters next week. Cilic's appeal was upheld at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which was also asked by the International Tennis Federation to impose a full two-year sanction for a first doping offense.
"The panel determined that the degree of fault committed by the athlete was inferior to that established in the (tribunal) decision," the court said in a statement. "The panel also determined that the sanction imposed was too severe in view of the degree of fault and concluded that it should be reduced to four months."
The court said the 25-year-old Croatian player was cleared to return from midnight Friday. Cilic's case was fast-tracked following an appeal hearing in London last week, with a verdict promised ahead of Friday's draw for the Paris Masters. It is the final regular tour event of the season.
Cilic tested positive for a banned stimulant, nikethamide, at a tournament in Munich in May. He claimed he did not intend to ingest the substance in glucose tablets and challenged his ban at CAS.
The ITF requested a two-year ban by appealing the verdict of its own independent tribunal. Cilic's ranking peaked at No. 9 in February 2010, and has dropped from 12th to No. 47 since accepting a provisional suspension in June. That day, he withdrew from his second-round match at Wimbledon citing a knee injury.
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