Maria surprised by Hingis ban

Two-time grand slam champion Maria Sharapova admitted she was surprised to see childhood idol Martina Hingis handed a two-year ban following a doping offence.

Hingis tested positive for cocaine following her defeat by Laura Granville at Wimbledon last year and on Friday was handed the ban by the International Tennis Federation.

"Martina has always been super nice to me," she said.

The former world number one and five-time grand slam winner returned a positive result from a routine urine sample following the defeat by Granville, but has previously insisted she was "100% innocent."

And Sharapova, who suffered a 6-4 6-3 defeat by Venus Williams in the final of JB Group Classic in Hong Kong on Saturday, had nothing but praise for the Swiss star.

"It is definitely sad to see as to this day I think she is an incredible champion and in front of my eyes she has always been an incredibly hard worker from spending extra hours on the court to extra time in the gym.

"She has been one of the toughest examples, especially when I was growing up, to see the work ethic she put in to what she did was incredible. I think it is just as surprising to me as it is to anyone else."