Andrea Petkovic ripped the Jannik Sinner doping ban as "a political decision" as the 2014 French Open semifinalist suggests the WADA came to the conclusion that the Italian didn't cheat but they needed him suspended just to avoid a backlash and possibly send a message.
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Since it was revealed that the WADA settled with the world No. 1 on a three-month ban and that the 23-year-old would be out of action between February 9th - May 4th, there has been a lot of about the three-time Grand Slam winner receiving "a preferential treatment."
Before they agreed on a three-month suspension, Sinner was slated to appear in a CAS court in mid-April and he was in danger of being suspended for a year or two.
And after the WADA agreed to settle and gave up on their initial hope of getting a 1-2 year suspension for the Italian, some have been wondering what prompted the anti-doping agency to have a change of heart.
"I think it has nuance, this is a political decision, nobody is happy with it, yes there was negotiation but there was nuance when they (WADA) decided he didn't cheat, they didn't know who he was," Petkovic said on the Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast.
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"Now, they know who he was and that's why he was able to negotiate.
"Because if WADA messes up on this one with Jannik Sinner, who was the No. 1 player in the world, won multiple Grand Slams, everyone in the world is talking about it."
Petkovic: They banned Sinner because they didn't want other players blaming their team members
After making her point clear, the former world No. 9 highlighted that the WADA evidently determined that the 23-year-old didn't knowingly or intentionally take a banned substance.
Then, she laid out a very interesting theory.
"Why are we banning the kid? This kid didn't cheat, we believe his story, why are we banning him?" the German added.
"I think because they realized if they let this slide, every player from now on will say, 'But it was a member of my team.' And then they are in real s---."
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Meanwhile, the WADA did indeed say in their statement that they accepted Sinner's explanation that his physio was to blame for what happened but also added they wanted him banned because their belief was that every player should be also responsible for the mistakes of his team.
