The world number two was given a one-month ban from the court after testing positive for the banned substance trimetazidine (TMZ) in August and admits that she didn't even want to train because of the immense disappointment she felt at the punishment.

Asked about the emotions she has gone through in recent months, Swiatek told Polish outlet TVN24: "Horror. And a huge disappointment.

"Just stepping onto the court was painful. If it hadn't been for my training partner, Tomek Moczek, who at the beginning was doing training sessions with me like you do with kids - we were just having fun on the court - I think I wouldn't have gone out to practice at all.

"The truth is, I love playing tennis, but not enough to sacrifice my honour or my values. I was put in a situation where suddenly people could judge me very negatively because of what happened."

Some have questioned the decision not to give Swiatek or men's world number one Jannik Sinner - who similarly tested positive for a banned substance this year - harsher punishments but the five-time major winner doesn't think doping cases can be compared.

She said: "I know that people automatically need to compare such situations to others that have happened before, but the truth is that each of these cases is completely different. And the process of proving innocence will also vary accordingly.

"It's hard to compare me to Sinner, (Simona) Halep, or Kamil Majchrzak because each of us is dealing with a different issue. I think that's more of a question for the ITIA than for the player. My fate, just like others, was in their hands, and they decide how each case unfolds.

"I trust that this process is objective, that everything is done according to the rules, and that no one judges a player either way based on their ranking.

"What mattered most to me was that I could start the new season with a clean slate and just focus on playing."