Jannik Sinner tennis doping ban: What is happening?

What is the latest in the Jannik Sinner case?

On September 28, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) announced that it would be appealing the decision of an independent tribunal in August. The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) had cleared Jannik Sinner of any wrongdoing in August despite the Italian having twice tested positive for low levels of a metabolite of clostebol, a banned substance, during a tournament in March.

WADA has now taken up the case with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), calling for a ban of "between one and two years" and stating that the ITIA decision was "not correct under the applicable rules."

How did we get here?

The positive test, at the Indian Wells tournament, led to sanctions in August. Sinner lost his money and points from the tournament, but a suspension was quickly overturned. Sinner, who had won the maiden Grand Slam at the Australian Open earlier in 2024 then went on to win the US Open. 

His explanation for the presence of the banned substance in his tests is that his physiotherapist, Giacomo Naldi, gave him a massage without gloves to treat a cut on his hand, which led to contamination. The spray used is available over the counter in Italy.

What has Sinner said?

The news about the appeal arrived while Sinner was playing at a tournament in China. After a win over Roman Safiullin, Sinner said:  "I'm very disappointed and also surprised of this appeal, to be honest, because we had three hearings. All three hearings came out very positively for me. I was not expecting it. I knew it couple of days ago, that they were going to appeal, that today it's going to go official, so... it's a surprise."

His legal team have previously insisted that Sinner, who has since parted company with the physio, was purely the victim of an error. "Anti-doping rules have to be very strict to be effective. Sadly the unfortunate consequence is that, occasionally, entirely innocent athletes get caught up in them. There is no question that Jannik is innocent in this case.

What about the other players?

Many players have taken in to account the tiny amounts of the drug in Sinner's test. "I have a virtue or a deficit, which is that in the end I usually believe in people’s good faith," said multiple Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal. "I know Sinner, I don’t believe that Sinner has ever wanted to dope."

Novak Djokovic expressed frustration with the lack of clarity. "There is a lot of issues in the system. We see a lack of standardised and clear protocols. I can understand the sentiments of a lot of players that are questioning whether they are treated the same."

Canadian tennis star Denis Shapovalov was among many players who pointed to the frustration that must be felt by others who have been banned for doping offences: "Can’t imagine what every other player that got banned for contaminated substances is feeling right now," he said.

What happens next?

Sinner has not yet been suspended, and it seems unlikely that he will be. There is not yet any indication on when CAS will review the case, nor when it will deliver a verdict. 

The next Grand Slam on the tennis calendar is the Australian Open in January, when Sinner will hope to defend his title.

Edited by: Louis Oelofse