‘Very Surprised if It Would Be the Opposite Side’- Jannik Sinner Stresses That He Is Innocent Amid Raging Controversy on WADA’s Decision

Jannik Sinner is having a hard time. All because of his controversial doping test failure not once, but twice. While Sinner pledges innocence, the World Anti-Doping Agency is not quite satisfied with the verdict. As their appeal pushes the Italian’s fate into uncertainty, he delves deeper stressing his innocence, and leaves a burning question: Will Sinner receive a positive verdict?

Sinner ended the 2024 China Open as a finalist. Amidst his doping controversy, his performance surprised the fraternity since he offered a great fight to his opponent Carlos Alcaraz in the finals. While Sinner couldn’t win the ATP event, he felt stressed about WADA’s intervention in the case. The Italian tested positive for low levels of a metabolite of clostebol on two separate tests in March. He received a few days of suspension and his prize money from the Indian Wells was stripped off. While Sinner’s lesser punishment brought a lot of controversy, the Italian remained firm on his stance of being innocent. He also expressed his feelings after the China Open finals.

“I’m a bit surprised,” Sinner said while reflecting on his feelings. Despite his amusement, the ATP number one believes the judgment will probably come in his favor. “In another way, I knew that there is potentially that this could happen. It happened, I’m still surprised, but I will, you know, collaborate like I did before. I had three hearings, which the three hearings went all my way, which, you know, it was good, but now let’s see, you know, but I’m very confident that it comes out very positively, or I would be very, very surprised if it would be the opposite side,” he said. While he seemed a little confident, there was an underlying stress about things going the other way. This is because such an outcome would jeopardize his career at its peak.

Sinner’s case has divided the internet. While stars like Nick Kyrgios or Denis Shapovalov strongly believed Sinner’s judgment was partial, many players blame the ITIA for its improper case assessment. From Tara Moore to Adriano Panatta, many tennis names have dropped interesting insights into Sinner’s case.

The tennis fraternity blames ITIA while explaining Sinner’s case

Tara Moore slammed ITIA on X while offering her bits on the Sinner case. Moore was charged with a doping violation that happened due to contaminated meat and was pushed aside for 19 months. Speaking on Sinner’s case, she wrote, “he @ptpaplayers is trying to figure out a way to work with the players on these cases. The ITIA need to have a precise, monotonous process for each case. They don’t and WADA would have looked incompetent if they didn’t pull it up. This is not the fault of Jannik. This is on ITIA.”

Former Italian Pro Adriano Panatta supported Sinner but explained how top-ranked players like him enjoy the benefits of hiring the best lawyers because they can afford it. Compared to them, ordinary players can’t take such active measures if they fall under doping controversy. Panatta’s statement highlighted the perks that top players receive which are not always available for the comparatively low-level players.

Nevertheless, Jannik Sinner’s doping case is a reminder of how careful players need to be in terms of such crucial aspects. Given he was tested with a banned substance, he has to go through the scrutiny of the system to prove his innocence. While the verdict awaits, people hope to see something positive for Sinner given his dedication to the sport. Do you think he will have a verdict in his favor this time?