Jannik Sinner almost dodged a bullet. While people were celebrating his Miami Open win, who knew Sinner would land into a pool of serious trouble? However, not everything goes according to a plan! Sinner, who had impressed the fraternity with his Grand Slam win at the 2024 Australian Open, underwent trouble following a failures in doping tests. Despite people criticzing him, his coach, Darren Cahill, came to Sinner’s rescue elaborating the truth behind everything.

Cahill, Sinner’s coach told ESPN that Sinner is taking extra precautions to make sure his failures in the anti-doping tests don’t repeat in the future. “Jannik has made sure that everyone is incredibly professional in what they do. So, he’s done as much as he possibly can to protect himself from this happening and unfortunately it has happened to him, and yeah I feel really bad for him that he has to go through this as well because he doesn’t deserve this.” 

He also revealed the impact of the test results on Sinner and his team. “Not an easy period for all of us, obviously. We’ve been living with this for a few months now, knowing how serious of an issue it is,” said Cahill.

Sinner’s case happened due to the negligence of his physiotherapist, Giacomo Naldi, and his fitness coach, Umberto Ferrara. They unintentionally exposed the Italian player to Trofodermin spray that contained the banned substance Clostebol. This happened during the Indian Wells. Clostebol is a common substance, which is found in many over-the-counter medicines in Italy.

While the substance was found in Sinner’s blood, he didn’t take it. As it turns out, his physiotherapist Naldi used the spray to treat his finger as recommended by Ferrara. When Naldi messaged Sinner’s body with bare hands during the Italian’s routine sessions, it unfortunately entered his body.

Sinner’s failure in the anti-doping tests showcased how a player’s success depends not just on him but on his entire team. While Sinner’s coach revealed the truth of the team’s distress over the situation, he also mentioned how the team was unaware of Naldi’s actions.

Darren Cahill revealed that Jannik Sinner had no part in it

Cahill revealed that the substance accidentally entered Sinner’s body and the Italian had no clue about it. He narrated the story behind it and said he first saw Naldi wrapping a bandage around his finger which got cut in an accident to remove feet calluses with a scalpel. Seeing him, Cahill asked if he could do something for Naldi and the latter refused, saying it was fine.

Sinner also noticed Naldi’s injury and asked whether he put a cream or ointment on his cut. However, Naldi declined, which was true at that moment. Naldi was offered the spray by Ferrara who had it for his personal use. “Over the course of the next week, Giacomo continued to use that spray to help the healing of his finger, unbeknown to any of us,” Cahill mentioned further.

While Sinner’s coach narrated the story, he also made sure that people understood how the Italian player had no part in this process. “(Jannik Sinner)– everybody has to know – he had no part in this at all. Somehow, he’s tested positive through this connection with this particular spray, we don’t know how – working on his feet, massage,” he said.

Sinner’s failure in anti-doping tests represents how a team member’s slip-up can land any player in trouble. After Sinner’s Miami Open win, he was notified about the test result and briefly suspended. While his immediate appeal helped him, it also showed how meticulous Sinner’s team has to be, to avoid such problems in the future.