Nick Kyrgios cleared to return as ITIA says he took cocaine out of competition

Australia's Nick Kyrgios is free to return to tennis after anti-doping authorities ruled that his positive test for cocaine had been conducted out of competition.

The 31-year-old former Wimbledon runner-up tested positive for the drug while playing in an ATP 250 event in Mallorca in June and began a provisional suspension on Aug. 4. He is officially allowed to play again starting Friday.

Had the test been conducted in competition, Kyrgios could have faced a four-year ban. Instead, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) banned him for three months, reduced to one month on the provision that he undergo an approved rehabilitation program.