The five-time Grand Slam champion made her first appearance since news of her failed doping test and subsequent ban was made public, speaking to Polish news channel TVN24 over the weekend.

Swiatek tested positive for trimetazidine in August and was informed of the result in September, when she was briefly provisionally suspended and missed three tournaments before successfully appealing. This time was counted when she was handed a one-month ban.

Explaining how she reacted when she found out she failed an anti-doping test, the Pole said: “My reaction was very intense.

“It was a mix of confusion and panic. There was a lot of crying. My manager said my reaction was like someone had died or something serious had happened to my health.”

Swiatek was also thrown into the unknown, admitting she didn’t know about the substance she tested positive for. “I thought it might be a mistake,” she continued.

“I really didn’t understand what was happening. The name of the substance itself was completely unfamiliar to me. I had never heard of its origin. I didn’t think much, I was just overwhelmed with emotions.”

The 23-year-old struggled to even get on a tennis court during the ordeal as she opened up on how she felt during the ordeal. “Horror. And a huge disappointment,” she added.

“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.”

Swiatek’s period of ineligibility officially ended on December 4. She initially served a provisional suspension from September 12 but eventually identified the source of contamination – a regulated non-prescription melatonin medicine.

The world No. 2 appealed her provisional suspension on September 22 and it was lifted on October 4. It meant that, when she accepted a one-month ban on November 27, she only had eight days left to serve.