Serena Williams shared her criticism of the anti-doping system in place for tennis players on the eve of her spectacular return to singles action at the 2026 Wimbledon Championships.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has now issued a response to Williams’ comments, claiming that the rules have been the same for years.
ITIA Responds After Serena Williams’ Criticism of Anti-Doping System
Williams had called the anti-doping system “unreasonable” and “unprofessional” during her press conference on Sunday. She claimed that the change in rules meant players had to report their whereabouts at any time of day, as agents could arrive to test them even outside their allotted times.
According to Williams’ understanding, anyone who failed to appear outside their assigned time window when required would have a missed test recorded against their name.
“It’s grueling. They changed the rules. I didn’t know some of the rules. Apparently, if you miss a test outside of your window, it still counts as missed. So I can’t go pick up my kids. It’s unprofessional. I hate it. I think it’s necessary, but if I want to go places outside of my window, I should be able to go without it counting as a missed test,” Williams said.
The ITIA has now issued a response, clarifying to the Associated Press that the rules for whereabouts failure have not changed in years. The anti-doping organization claimed that if agents are unable to reach a player for a test during their allotted hour, it is not counted as a test refusal, but a player gets a strike for a missed test.
However, if testers are unable to reach players outside their allotted hours, it is not considered a strike. Players must still provide their whereabouts information to the ITIA and can only be charged if they miss three tests within a 12-month period.
“If a tester is unable to reach a player during their allocated hour, then it may well be a ‘strike,’ and three failures could lead to a charge. If a tester is unable to reach a player outside of their allocated hour, it is not considered a strike,” the ITIA said in a statement.
The ITIA further claimed that the strict rules were in place to protect players and added that they were always available for dialogue if players had concerns.
“There have been no changes to the whereabouts rules in the last few years. We understand the system can seem challenging, but it is there to protect players, not to trip them up. If players are unsure or have questions, we would welcome a conversation with them directly or through their agents,” they added.
MORE: List of Players Missing Wimbledon 2026, Including Carlos Alcaraz and Markéta Vondroušová
The controversy surrounding the anti-doping rules arose after Markéta Vondroušová was handed a four-year ban for refusing an out-of-competition anti-doping test in December 2025.
Vondroušová claimed that the anti-doping agent arrived at her house outside of her allotted time, causing her to have an acute-stress reaction. However, an independent tribunal ruled that she lacked compelling justification for refusing the test and upheld the ban.
Had the agent been unable to locate Vondroušová, she would not have faced any consequences, including a whereabouts failure, as the attempted test fell outside her designated one-hour time slot. At the same time, the rules reportedly require anti-doping officials to conduct at least one out-of-hours test annually.
