Nick Kyrgios never shies away from voicing his thoughts—though at times, they might be a bit too loud. His latest remark has taken his ongoing feud with Jannik Sinner over his doping case a bit further. Interestingly, this remark was made on a post talking about Roger Federer. Well, how does it even add up? Let’s find out.

Ever since Jannik Sinner’s doping case surfaced, several players including Nick Kyrgios, Denis Shapovalov, and Simona Halep have aired their displeasure against the ITIA’s decision. But Kyrgios has now escalated the situation. On a recent Instagram post where Sinner’s coach Darren Cahill was praising Roger Federer, Kyrgios dropped a comment completely out of context.

In his post on Instagram, Cahill stated, “Roger Federer’s game was often referred to as effortless, and people said he made the game look easy. At tournaments, many fans would comment on the fact that Roger looked extremely casual (even lazy) during his warm-up sessions.” However, more than Cahill’s post, it was Kyrgios’ comment that grabbed all the attention, as he wrote, “Did he use cream?”

Kyrgios’ comment was actually a brutal dig at Sinner for his failed dope tests. The Italian, in his explanation to the independent tribunal, had stated that his physio used a cream that had Clostebol in it. The physio then treated him without gloves, as a result of which he came in contact with the banned substance.

While the explanation was accepted by the tribunal and Sinner was let off without a ban, Kyrgios was far from pleased with the verdict and implied that the consequences should have been much stricter. He even called for a ban. “You get tested twice with a banned (steroid) substance… you should be gone for 2 years. Your performance was enhanced. Massage cream… Yeah, nice,” the Aussie wrote on X.

While Sinner’s case drew harsh criticism from Kyrgios, others have taken a more cautious approach to the situation. Some think Sinner may have been the victim of an unlucky occurrence. In contrast to Kyrgios’ aggressive approach, the Norwegian player Casper Ruud recently shared a more considerate perspective on the doping situation.

Casper Ruud offered a contrasting perspective to Nick Kyrgios’ stance

Casper Ruud, after reviewing Jannik Sinner’s doping case, admitted that he also thought initially that Sinner, being the top player in the world, might have gotten special treatment. But after looking into the case and its regulations more closely, he came to a different conclusion.

“I noticed at the start before I got into the case and the sequence of events, that I also thought there were a few owls in the bog. He is No. 1 in the world, there had to be discrimination. But then I familiarised myself with the case and the rules. If you have read the documents and understand the process in this type of case, then you understand that there is no discrimination here,” the 25-year-old said.

Ruud praised Sinner for quickly finding an explanation within 15 days of testing positive, something few athletes manage. The Norwegian believes this timely defense worked in Sinner’s favor. In addition, Ruud also highlighted that, at times, athletes might unintentionally consume prohibited substances, thereby disagreeing with Nick Kyrgios’ opinion.

While Jannik Sinner hasn’t responded to Kyrgios’ consistent digs in the last few weeks, it will be interesting to see if Cahill responds to Kyrgios’ comment on his latest Instagram post.