"Players who never won a Slam, they're smart to try to keep Maria Sharapova out"- When Russian's agent slammed Caroline Wozniacki, Agnieszka Radwanska
In April 2017, Maria Sharapova's longtime agent, Max Eisenbud, lashed out at Caroline Wozniacki and Agnieszka Radwanska over voicing opposition to the Russian receiving wildcard entries into events' main draws. Wozniacki and Radwanska's opposition stemmed from Sharapova returning to tennis after serving a 15-month doping suspension.
At the 2016 Australian Open, a sample provided by Sharapova tested positive for the prohibited substance meldonium. She was initially given a two-year ban, which was later reduced to 15 months. The five-time Grand Slam champion made her comeback at the 2017 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, where she received a wildcard entry into the main draw.
Wozniacki was against Sharapova being a wildcard at Stuttgart. At the time, there was also talk of the Russian potentially receiving a wildcard entry into the French Open main draw. Meanwhile, Radwanska was specifically against the idea of the Russian being a wildcard at Majors.
Maria Sharapova's agent, Max Eisenbud, soon hit back at Wozniacki and Radwanska. Eisenbud opined that the Dane and the Pole were desperate to win the 2017 French Open and knew that their task would be made difficult if Sharapova was also in the main draw.
"All those 'journeyman' players like Radwanska and Wozniacki who have never won a Slam and the next generation passing them. They are smart to try to keep Maria out of Paris. NO Serena, NO Maria, NO Vika, NO Petra, it's their last chance to win a Slam," Eisenbud said via a statement issued to journalist Ben Rothenberg.
Later that year, Wozniacki issued a stinging response to Eisenbud's "journeyman" remark about her and Radwanska.
Caroline Wozniacki hits back at Maria Sharapova's agent Max Eisenbud
Offended by Maria Sharapova's agent's "journeyman" take about her and Agnieszka Radwanska, Caroline Wozniacki later spoke her mind about Eisenbud in an interview with The Times.
The Dane claimed that Eisenbud would deliberately avoid her. Wozniacki went on to label the agent "embarrassing" for speaking out against Radwanska, who was represented by IMG, where Eisenbud himself was one of the leading figures.
"He is scared to even see me. I walk in the player lounge and he will literally walk the other way. I think that is embarrassing for him since he is one of the head people of IMG. I think it’s a completely ridiculous comment and obviously it shows more about him than about me. And he said that about me and Radwanska, who is in IMG. That’s even more embarrassing for him," Wozniacki said.
Wozniacki would eventually go on to break her Grand Slam duck and prove Eisenbud wrong at the 2018 Australian Open, where she won the title after defeating Simona Halep in the final.