Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic blasts the authorities for keeping everyone in the dark in Jannik Sinner’s doping case.
According to The West, the 2024 Paris Olympics gold medallist on Sunday, December 29, 2024, said that the double standards of the authorities in World No. 1 tennis players and other players doping cases are damaging the image of the sport.
2024 Australian Open and US Open winner who tested positive for the banned substance in March 2024 and avoided the ban after the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) determined that he did not know about it.
Later, unlike Sinner, former women's world No. 1 Iga Swiatek received one month's suspension in November; Australian Max Purcell was also hit by a ban for unknowingly receiving prohibited substances, and Tara Moore also served a 19-month.
This sparked criticism from the 24-time Grand Slam winner to raise questions on the double standards of the authorities.
Djokovic said, “I'm not questioning whether (Sinner) took the banned substance intentionally or not. We've had plenty of players in the past who are currently under suspension for not even testing positive for the banned substances. Some players with lower rankings are waiting for their case to be resolved for over a year.”
“I've been really frustrated ... to see we've been kept in the dark for at least five months (on the Sinner case). The ATP hasn't really talked in depth about it. Why have they kept that case away from the public? We see Simona Halep's case on the WTA Tour, and now Iga Swiatek's case. It's not a good image for our sport,” he continued.
Furthermore, Djokovic will team up with Nick Kyrgios in doubles at the Brisbane International on Monday, December 30, 2024, ahead of the first Grand Slam of the 2025 season, the Australian Open.
