Novak Djokovic says players believe there is favouritism in anti-doping system
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Novak Djokovic speaking at a press conference at the Qatar Open in Doha, on Feb 17.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
DOHA – Novak Djokovic said a majority of players believe favouritism is at play in the tennis anti-doping system, and called for it to be overhauled in the wake of cases involving world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek.
Sinner accepted a three-month doping ban on Feb 15
While Djokovic was not suggesting that either of the Grand Slam champions had intentionally done anything wrong, he did say there were inconsistencies in their treatment at the hands of the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA).
“The two cases of Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner have attracted a lot of attention, and it’s not a good image for our sport,” the 24-time Grand Slam champion said at the Qatar Open on Feb 17.
“There’s a majority of the players that I’ve talked to in the locker room, not just in the last few days, but also last few months, that are not happy with the way this whole process has been handled.
“A majority of the players don’t feel that (the doping process is) fair. They feel like there is favouritism happening. It appears that you can almost affect the outcome if you are a top player, if you have access to the top lawyers.”
Other current and former players such as Nick Kyrgios, Stan Wawrinka and Tim Henman have raised questions over Sinner’s case, with the latter suggesting that the expiration of the Italian’s ban just before the Rome Masters and French Open was “too convenient”.
Djokovic, who co-founded the Professional Tennis Players Association as a voice for the athletes in the game, added that there was already a widespread mistrust of the entire doping process among his fellow players.
“I think right now it’s the ripe time for us to address the system, because the system and the structure obviously doesn’t work on anti-doping, it’s obvious,” the 37-year-old Serb said.
“I hope in the near future the governing bodies are going to come together, of our tours and the tennis ecosystem, and try to find a more effective way to deal with these processes. It’s inconsistent and it appears to be very unfair.”
Sinner’s agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency – who had appealed when the Italian was initially cleared without punishment in 2024 – recognised his explanation that tainted products used by his masseur had been behind the positive test.
“Sinner got suspended for three months because of the mistakes and the negligence of his team members that are working on the (ATP) Tour, so that’s also something that I, and a lot of players, find a bit strange,” Djokovic said.
He pointed out that it looked like very different processes were followed by the ITIA in doping cases involving the likes of Romanian Simona Halep and Briton Tara Moore.
For the record, the recently retired Halep, a former world No. 1 and two-time Major champion, was handed a four-year ban by the ITIA in 2022 after testing positive for the blood-boosting drug roxadustat.
She argued it was the result of a tainted supplement and successfully appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which reduced her suspension to nine months – but only after a long and thorough process.
“There are so many inconsistencies between the cases,” he said.
“We have seen on social media Simona Halep and Tara Moore and some other players that are maybe less known that have been struggling to resolve their cases for years, or have gotten the ban for years.
“We have to bear in mind that Sinner and Swiatek at the time were No. 1s in the world when we had those announcements happening.” REUTERS, AFP
