Chelsea winger Mykhailo Mudryk is facing a provisional suspension after allegedly testing positive for meldonium, the same substance that led to tennis legend Maria Sharapova’s lengthy ban in 2016.

Mudryk, 23, returned a positive result for an A-sample in late October and is now awaiting confirmation from the decisive B-sample.

Meldonium was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) prohibited substances list in 2016. Sharapova, one of the most high-profile athletes to test positive, was initially banned for two years. Following an appeal, her suspension was reduced to 15 months after she revealed she had taken meldonium for a decade due to health issues but was unaware of its new banned status.

The drug has been at the centre of other sporting controversies. Russian boxer Alexander Povetkin tested positive in 2016, which led to the cancellation of his bout against Deontay Wilder. However, Povetkin was later cleared after a second test.

In recent years, significant bans have been handed out for meldonium use, including four-year suspensions for Olympic curling bronze medallist Alexander Krushelnitskiy, wrestler Tamerlan Tagziev, and canoeist Oleksandr Senkevych. Kazakh footballer Aybol Abiken received a three-year suspension in 2022, while gaelic football player Ray Walker also faced a similar ban.

Mudryk’s case now mirrors these high-profile incidents, as Chelsea await further developments surrounding their Ukrainian star’s provisional suspension.