Jannik Sinners season would have been perfect without the doping accident that has plagued him in recent months. In April, the world number 1 found out he was found positive twice at Clostebol during the Indian Wells Masters 1000. The Italian ace immediately understood the reason for that contamination and was able to prove his innocence, which is why ITIA immediately lifted the provisional suspension and Jannik could play regularly in the following months.
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After a lengthy trial, ITIA has recognized Sinner as innocent and issued the verdict just before the start of the US Open. The 23-year-old from Sesto Pusteria thought he had finally put that bad case behind him and won his second Grand Slam title in New York, defeating local idol Taylor Fritz in the final.
During the tournament in Beijing, news came that surprised everyone. WADA has decided to appeal the acquittal of ITIA and has requested a disqualification for Sinner from one to two years. A new trial has begun, which will take months before reaching a final verdict. According to the latest rumors, the two-time Grand Slam champion will know his fate in early 2025.
The doping case involving Sinner has generated many discussions in the tennis world, between those who have always supported the number 1 in the world and those who attacked him hard. Nick Kyrgios has been very critical towards the 23-year-old from Sesto Pusteria, followed by Lucas Pouille and Denis Shapovalov. At the same time, the 2-time Grand Slam champion was supported by other colleagues who stressed his innocence and praised him for his incredible mental strength.
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Musettion Sinners case
During an interview with Tennis Majors, Italian ace Lorenzo Musetti discussed Sinners controversy: Most of the other recent cases of Clostebol were not from tennis players. There were a few. If there had been 38 tennis players, it would probably have made it seem like something was wrong. But at our level, I know that only Jannik has been tested positive for this substance. We should not therefore remove all the good things about Italian tennis because of this. There are a lot of controls and there is a lot of transparency in this sport. And I dont want to think about anything else. I believe in the fight against doping.
Sinner and Musetti will be among the stars of Italy at the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga next month. Both will try to drag their team to the second triumph in a row in this event, perhaps with the help of Matteo Berrettini. Jannik was the great dominator of 2024 together with Carlos Alcaraz, having shared equally the four Grand Slam titles played this year.
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Their rivalry is ready to take tennis to a new dimension, as shown by the spectacle offered by these two champions both in the final of the tournament in Beijing and at the 'Six Kings Slam' in Saudi Arabia. The Italian ace is already sure to finish the season at the top of the ATP ranking, having built a really large gap compared to Carlitos and all the other rivals.
Thiem's advice to other players
In a long interview with Tennis Majors, Dominic Thiem who played the last match of his career in Vienna this week - gave some tips to other players to defeat Sinner and Alcaraz: "In 2017 I won against Rafael Nadal in Rome and against Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros. It was two incredible victories. There I understood that if I play my best, I really have a chance and it doesnt matter the surface or the tournament.
It was crucial, because you really have to go with the conviction of winning on the court against those legends. And I think its the same now: if youre facing Carlos or Jannik, the only way to get a chance is to come out on the court with this feeling. The crucial part for every player is to be able to think, 'If Im playing at my best, it doesnt matter what the opponent is doing. I can still beat him.
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The 31-year-old then revealed how on one occasion this thought did not work: "It was the final of the 2019 French Open against Rafa, I really had the feeling that I played my best tennis there. And he still managed to change gears. My best tennis was not enough and I think you should accept it. Its pretty easy to accept for me, because there is nothing more I could do. This was the only major game where this belief did not work. But in all other challenges it worked. I think thats why Ive been able to collect a lot of wins against the Big Three".
