Serena Williams says she would have received 20-year ban if she failed drug tests like Jannik Sinner

NEW YORK – American tennis great Serena Williams said she would have been banned for 20 years and stripped of her Grand Slam titles, had she failed drug tests like men’s world No. 1 Jannik Sinner did in 2024.

The Italian accepted a mere three-month ban in February following an agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada), which challenged an independent tribunal’s decision to clear him of wrongdoing after two positive tests for the anabolic agent clostebol.

“I love the guy, love this game. He’s great for the sport. I’ve been put down so much, I don’t want to bring anyone down. Men’s tennis needs him,” Williams, who retired in 2022 after winning 23 Grand Slam singles trophies, told Time Magazine.

“(But) if I did that (fail a drug test), I would have gotten 20 years. Let’s be honest. I would have gotten Grand Slams taken away from me.”

It was not clear what she meant by her comment, or if she had suggested that the game was always being unfair to her despite her status. Reuters has contacted Sinner’s team and Wada for comment.

Williams also said she took extra care with what she put into her body during her career in case she ingested something that got her in trouble.

Reigning Australian Open and US Open champion Sinner, whose ban will end on May 4, has always maintained his innocence though his case raised questions about whether he had received preferential treatment from the authorities.

Iga Swiatek’s case also caused some surprise, with the women’s world No. 2 accepting a one-month suspension in November after testing positive for the banned substance trimetazidine.

Former world No. 1 Simona Halep was also banned despite denying knowingly taking the banned drug roxadustat and her four-year suspension was cut to nine months in 2024 after an appeal at sport’s highest court.

Swiatek, meanwhile, beat qualifier Jana Fett 6-2, 6-2 in the last 16 of the WTA event in Stuttgart on April 16.

The Pole broke her 153rd-ranked Croatian opponent twice in the first set and three times in the second.

The victory marked a return to winning ways for five-time Grand Slam winner Swiatek as she bounced back from a surprise defeat by 19-year-old Alexandra Eala in the quarter-finals of the Miami Open in March.

“You need a lot of inner energy and a lot of motivation to get out every week and play as good as you can. It’s not only about technique and tennis. It’s about mentality and the feelings you have inside,” she said.

Swiatek has twice won in Stuttgart, in 2022 and 2023. A third Stuttgart crown would be her first tournament victory in 2025, following her drug case.

In men’s tennis, Barcelona Open holder Casper Ruud ousted Hamad Medjedovic 7-5, 7-5 to reach the quarter-finals.

The Norwegian, ranked 10th in the world, conceded a break in the first game of the first set, but pulled level at 4-4 with one of his own. Ruud survived four break points for a 6-5 lead and then converted his third set point to take the first set.

The 26-year-old, a three-time Grand Slam runner-up, once again came from a break down in the second set to triumph, breaking to love against the Serb to wrap up his win.

“That was quite fortunate today. I’m also happy with my mentality, that I didn’t give up, that I tried to hang in there. It was a little bit too much up and down today for my personal liking,” he said.

Runner-up to Ruud in 2024, third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas also steered into the quarter-finals with a 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 win over American Sebastian Korda.

The Greek came up against spirited opposition, with both players strong on their serve, but did not concede a break point in his straight-set win. REUTERS, AFP