The Novak Djokovic-founded PTPA (Professional Tennis Players Association) has hit back at the WTA over their claim that Iga Swiatek’s suspension was an “unfortunate incident”.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) confirmed that Swiatek had received a one-month suspension, the majority of which has been completed, after it was deemed the Polish star carried “no significant fault or negligence.”

The world No. 2 was found to have had trimetazidine (TMZ) in her system shortly before the Cincinnati Open, before serving 22 days of her ban during the Asian swing.

A swift statement was released by the WTA describing the situation as an “unfortunate incident” as their support was offered to Swiatek as she navigated the suspension and subsequent fall-out.

But the PTPA have taken issue with that labelling by the WTA, as the association’s executive director Ahmad Nassar took to social media to lament the response.

“I’m sorry. This was not an “unfortunate incident,” Nassar wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter). “A real unfortunate incident is something you cannot control. Tennis can – and should! – no, must! – control its own anti-doping process.

“Athletes indeed face ‘challenges.’ Like, the weather. And their opponents. But the messy, tennis-establishment imposed anti-doping process is not some ‘challenge’ athletes must overcome. That’s a cop-out.

“What ‘precaution’ should Iga have taken here? Pre-test melatonin on the minuscule chance it was contaminated? Come on.

“Perhaps the tours which claim to ‘fully support’ players should offer pre-tested common medications, like melatonin, to all players? What’s that? Sounds unreasonable? Oh ok – then why do we place even more unreasonable standards and burdens on individual athletes???

“And dropping this on Thanksgiving morning in the US is classic subterfuge.”

With just eight days left on Swiatek’s suspension, she will be able to return and compete in her next two events at the United Cup and the Australian Open, months after men’s No. 1 Jannik Sinner was cleared following his positive test for a banned anabolic steroid.

Swiatek was found to have been “at the lowest end of the range for no significant fault or negligence” and explained her violation was caused by a contaminated supply of the non-prescription medication melatonin.

The ITIA accepted Swiatek’s explanation that the melatonin provided to the 23-year-old by her physio was contaminated during manufacturing, resulting in an extremely low trace of TMZ.

But the PTPA have since been up in arms at the WTA’s reaction. Djokovic founded the association with Vasek Pospisil in 2020, which represents players in both the ATP and WTA in an attempt to “provide players with a self-governance structure that is independent from the ATP and is directly responsive to player-members needs and concerns”.