Novak Djokovic believes Jannik Sinner’s doping ban will ‘follow him like a cloud’

Join the Miguel Delaney Inside Football Join the Miguel Delaney Inside newsletter to get exclusive access and unparalleled insight. Football Join the Miguel Delaney Inside newsletter Football newsletterNovak Djokovic believes Jannik Sinner’s three-month doping suspension is a “cloud” That will follow him throughout his career. Sinner twice tested positive for the anabolic agent clostebol in March 2024 but the World Anti-Doping Agency accepted the four-time grand slam champion’s explanation that the banned substance inadvertently entered his system following massages from his then physio. Wada said Sinner “did not intend to cheat” The Italian and I reached an agreement in February which allowed him to compete at the French Open, the next Grand Slam. “partial responsibility”. Djokovic claimed he believed Sinner “didn’t do it on purpose” open image in galleryDjokovic was unsure of the timing of Sinner’s 3-month ban. (Getty Images). open image in galleryDjokovic questioned the timing of Sinner’s three-month ban (Getty Images)Djokovic said the fallout from Sinner’s case would hang over the 24-year-old for the rest of his career, and compared it to his deportation from Australia in 2022 after entering the country without a Covid-19 vaccine. “That cloud will follow him as the cloud of Covid will follow me for the rest of his, or my career in this case,” Djokovic stated in an interview with Piers Moor. “It’s just something that, it was so major, and that when it happens, it’s just, you know, over time, it will fade, but I don’t think it will disappear. There’s always going to be a certain group of people that will always try to bring that forward.”Djokovic thought that there were many ways to get the best results. “red flags” around Sinner’s settlement with Wada, who have defended their handling of the case. The International Tennis Integrity Agency said there was also no preferential treatment. “There is the lack of transparency, the inconsistency, the convenience of, you know, the ban coming, between the [grand] slams, so he doesn’t miss out the others. It’s just, it was very, very odd,” Djokovic has said. “And so I really don’t like how the case was being handled and you could hear so many other players, both male and female, who had some similar situations coming in, you know, coming out in the media, and complaining that it was a preferable treatment.open image in gallerySinner won Wimbledon after returning to tennis ahead of the French Open (Getty Images)“So I think essentially, I want to believe and I knowing and my history with him, I think he didn’t do it on purpose. But of course, he is responsible, because those are the rules. You are responsible when something like this happens. And so when you see someone for something very similar or [the] same being banned for years, and then he’s banned for original, whatever three months, or whatever it was, it’s just, it’s not right.”After winning the Australian Open at the start of the season and before his three-month ban, Sinner reached the finals at all three of the year’s grand slams and won his first Wimbledon title by beating rival Carlos Alcaraz. Alcaraz defeated him in both the French Open and US Open finals. Djokovic said he was impressed with Sinner’s response to the criticism and that he also felt a sense of relief. “sense of empathy” He has been criticized for his criticism. “It’s not easy for him,” Djokovic has said. “And I think he has handled the storm in the media that keeps on coming back every once in a while. He’s handling that very well and very maturely and very steadily and kudos to him for that. It’s definitely not easy. And in the midst of all of that, he’s still dominating. He’s still playing incredible winning slams, winning things.”
2025-11-12 10:03:32