NEW YORK – The US Open kicked off amid a tense atmosphere over Jannik Sinner ‘s positive doping case, with some players expressing annoyance at the way the matter involving the world number one was resolved.
One of the most heated comments about the issue, which came to light early in the week leading up to the final Grand Slam of the season, was England’s Liam Broady.
‘Not treated differently from other players but gets curated, presidential sit down interviews with ESPN to maintain image . Where’s this energy for everybody else? Never seen anything like this ,’ the tennis player posted sarcasticaly on his Twitter account.
Broady is in Mallorca to play a challenger (he lost in the first round of the qualy in New York), but through social networks he was present in the conversation at Flushing Meadows, again criticizing the handling of the doping case that has Sinner as the protagonist. This time, he reacted to the Italian being given the chance to speak to one of the world’s leading television networks ahead of his debut on Tuesday.
‘There are players who claim there is a double standard, Jannik is treated one way, other players are treated another way. Darren Cahill, your coach, said the explanation is because Jannik has resources and can rely on a good legal team. Can you imagine going through this process without experts surrounding you?’ asked Chris McKendry at the start of a 2 1/2-minute interview in ESPN.
“I hope people understand why they let me keep playing and why I got the no fault.”
Jannik Sinner is ready to move forward after testing positive for a banned substance. pic.twitter.com/nAlcER8o6E
— ESPN (@espn) August 25, 2024
‘It’s also the position you are in. Being there (at number one), I have the ability to have qualified people. Others will find it different. I was treated the same as the rest, and the reason I kept playing was because I knew exactly how the Clostebol got into my body, because of the spray. I wasn’t treated any differently, it was a long process (…) It was not an easy period,’ Sinner said.
The presenter gave him the last word to ‘close’ the matter in front of the cameras. ‘I’m glad it’s over. A lot of weight on my shoulders is gone. I wish no player had to go through that, I also hope people understand why they let me play,’ added the 2024 Australian Open champion.
Sinner fired his fitness trainer Umberto Ferrara, and his physiotherapist Giacomo Naldi, who were directly responsible for the banned substance entering his body.
Nick Kyrgios, who is in New York but still absent from the competition, commented on his English colleague’s tweet with a question: “I’m just wondering as to why they waited 5 months to fire the physio? If they knew about it so early on”.
“I wouldn’t be on any channels because I’d be banned for 2-4 years to four years,” Broady added in a reply.
Sitting in the press conference room, some top tennis players spoke about the case that has taken over the agenda. One of them was Novak Djokovic.
‘Instances like this are the reasons why we founded the PTPA (Professional Tennis Player Association),’ the Serb said. ‘There we are always advocating for fair and clear protocols and standardised approaches in these kinds of cases (…) I understand the players’ frustration with the lack of consistency. The system has many problems. I hope the powers that be in our sport learn from this and have better management in the future. There has to be a change,’ said the 24-time Grand Slam champion.
Djokovic referred, without specifying, to the cases of other players suspended for doping: ‘Many players, without naming any of them, have had similar or almost the same cases, where they have not had the same result, and now the question is whether it’s a case of whether a player can afford to pay a significant amount of money for a law firm to represent his case more effectively”.
Taylor Fritz, meanwhile, also called for consistency: “A lot of people get suspended for unfortunate reasons. I guess in this ruling they’ve considered that it’s different and there’s no ban, and I trust he wasn’t doing something on purpose. I just think that it should be consistent across the board with suspensions and who gets suspended, who doesn’t’.
Surprisingly on Saturday, shortly into the Italian’s first press conference, the USTA’s moderator said they would not take any more questions on the subject: ‘You can ask the question, but he’s already given his statement.” The journalists protested and the questions that later came all alluded to the doping case.
Despite the tournament’s failed attempt to avoid the topic, the Italian responded without issue to each of the international press’s questions, with neither arrogance nor evasiveness.
Questions that will continue to arise as Jannik Sinner advances in the US Open.
