Wada appeals and seeks ban after Jannik Sinner cleared in doping case
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Italy's Jannik Sinner with the US Open trophy after winning the final against American Taylor Fritz.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
Montreal – The World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) said on Sept 28 that it has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in the steroid case of tennis world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.
“Wada is seeking a period of ineligibility of between one and two years,” it said in a statement, after the Italian, who beat Russian Roman Safiullin 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the China Open on Sept 28, twice tested positive for the banned substance clostebol in March but was cleared to carry on playing.
In August, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) said that Sinner had been cleared of any wrongdoing after twice testing positive earlier in the season, while the 23-year-old, who recently won the US Open for his second Grand Slam title, has denied doping.
“Obviously, I’m very disappointed and also surprised. We had three hearings. All three hearings came out very positively for me. Maybe they just want to make sure that everything is in the right position,” Sinner said after his win.
The ITIA accepted his explanation that clostebol – an anabolic agent prohibited by Wada – entered his system when his physio Giacomo Naldi applied an over-the-counter spray containing the drug to his own skin to treat a small finger wound and then administered massages between March 5 and 13 without using gloves.
Wada said in its statement that it lodged an appeal to CAS, the top court in sport, on Sept 26.
“It is Wada’s view that the finding of ‘no fault or negligence’ was not correct under the applicable rules... Wada is not seeking a disqualification of any results, save that which has already been imposed by the tribunal of first instance,” it said.
The decision to clear the Italian was met with scepticism by some players in the locker room, who suggested that Sinner had benefited from preferential treatment due to his status in the sport.
For now, the world No. 1 will focus on his quarter-final match clash with Jiri Lehecka of the Czech Republic on Sept 30, following his win over Safiullin in Beijing.
He dropped the first set and the second set went with serve until the sixth game when Sinner finally broke to go up 4-2, celebrating with a subtle pump of the fists.
He took control early on in the deciding set on the way to a comfortable victory which maintained his record of having reached at least the quarter-finals at every tour-level event he has played in 2024.
He also tied German world No. 2 Alexander Zverev for the most victories this season with 57.
Also progressing was third seed Daniil Medvedev, who overcame Adrian Mannarino 7-6 (8-6), 6-2 to set up a quarter-final match against Flavio Cobolli of Italy.
In the women’s draw, world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka sailed past Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew 6-4, 6-1 to reach the round of 32, where she will take on American Ashlyn Krueger.
Joining her in the next round is Olympic gold medallist and local star Zheng Qinwen, after the Chinese defeated Russia’s Kamilla Rakhimova 6-1, 6-1. AFP, REUTERS
