French tennis star Alize Cornet has been placed under a disciplinary investigation after missing three random drugs tests within a 12-month period.
The French tennis federation (FFT) announced on Thursday (NZ time) Cornet, who eliminated world No12 Julia Goerges in the second round of the Australian Open, was being investigatedas missing three tests in 12-month violates anti-doping regulations.
Cornet could now face a ban from the sport of up to two years following the investigation - depending on the degree of fault. However, she will have the opportunity to prove she had a legitimate reason for missing one of the tests.
The FFT said they had been informed by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) that the world No42 had missed the tests and therefore would not be considered for Fed Cup duty while the inquiry is ongoing.
"The French Tennis Federation, after being informed by the International Tennis Federation on January 11, takes note of the opening, against Alize Cornet, of a disciplinary procedure for a breach of the rules governing the anti-doping fight, in this case three non-appearances during random checks in the last twelve months," the FFT said in a statement.
Despite being banned for the Fed Cup, Cornet was still allowed to compete at the Australian Open while her situation is being investigated.
The 27-year-old posted a statement regarding the situation on social media, and said: "among the 20 anti doping controls that I had in the 2017 season, which were all negative of course, I missed 3 unannounced controls at home because of valuable reasonsthat the ITF didn't want to hear."
Cornet's case was set to be settled at a hearing in March, she added.
