Iga Swiatek said she felt embarrassed that she couldn't be honest about her absence from the tour.
The world number two failed a doping test in August and served a one-month ban after it was accepted that medication she was taking to combat jet lag was contaminated.
That news wasn't announced until November, when it emerged she had missed three tournaments in the fall while serving a suspended sentence, which she attributed at the time to personal reasons, fatigue and a change of coach.
Coming so soon after the announcement in August that former men's No.1 Jannik Sinner had failed two undisclosed tests in March, it was another major blow to the sport's reputation.
Speaking ahead of the Australian Open, Swiatek said: “The first three weeks I would say were pretty chaotic. There was no way to get answers to questions. We just focused on finding sources.
“But I have to say, it sure wasn't easy. It was probably the worst time of my life. And the fact that I had no control over this whole situation and had no way to avoid it made it even worse because I'm a bit of a control freak.
“Just to feel like everything that I've kind of built up can be taken away so quickly because of something that you have no control over, to me it was pretty crazy and really abstract.
“The first two or three weeks I was just focused on myself because I wasn't in a good place. I had problems just being on the court. I thought tennis did that to me a little bit. I didn't really read things because the priority was me and my well-being .
“After that it got pretty awkward. We chose for the first tournament to say personal reasons because we honestly thought that the suspension would be lifted soon.
“It was obvious from the beginning that something was contaminated because the level of this substance in my urine was so low that it had to be contamination.
“Because we didn't know what was going to happen because we had no control over the decision of the ITIA (International Tennis Integrity Agency), we couldn't make any logical plan. We started with personal problems because I also needed time to understand everything. .”
Sviatek returned to play at the WTA Finals and the Billie Jean King Cup Final after her temporary suspension was lifted, but before the news broke.
She admitted that she was afraid of what the reaction would be, but thanked her rivals for their support.
“Besides not being able to play, this was the worst thing for me, as people would say,” she said. “Because I always worked hard to be a good example, to show my integrity, to behave well.
“Again, having no control over this case scared me a little. But in the locker room the girls are great. I have already seen at this exhibition in Abu Dhabi (in December) that they are really supportive.
“Most of them have even come up to me. They say, 'Hey, how do we avoid this? Is there a way to be more careful?' They are worried that it could happen to them.
“There are a lot of top players – I won't say names – who are really supportive. I really appreciate it, because I felt better when I came back and I didn't know how it was going to be.”
Second seed Swiatek will play Czech Katerina Siniakova in the first round in Melbourne.
What's coming up on Sky Sports Tennis?
- ABN AMRO Open Rotterdam (ATP 500) – February 3-9
- Dallas Open (ATP 500) – February 3-9
- Delray Beach Open (ATP 250) – February 10-16
- IEB+ Argentina Open (ATP 250) – February 10-16
- Open 13 Provence (ATP 250) – February 10-16
- Transylvania Open (WTA 250) – February 3-9
- Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open (WTA 500) – February 3-8
- Qatar TotalEnergies Open (WTA 1000) – 9.-15. February
- Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships (WTA 1000) – February 16-22
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