Jannik Sinner: Nick Kyrgios and Denis Shapovalov among the tour players react to Italy’s anti-doping decision

Nick Kyrgios has put the decision to clear Jannik Sinner of any wrongdoing first after two failed doping tests, while others defended the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA)’s proceedings.

A detailed report confirmed Sinner’s argument that Naldi had used a product containing clostebol to treat a cut on his hand.

Reactions from the tennis community were mixed, as Sinner was allowed to continue playing and the case was not made public until Tuesday, August 20. Sinner was stripped of his results, ranking points and prize money from Indian Wells, where he reached the semifinals.

“I will now put this challenging and deeply unfortunate time behind me,” Sinner said in a statement.

“I will continue to do everything I can to comply with the ITIA anti-doping program and I have a team around me that is very conscientious about complying with its own rules.”

However, Kyrgios questioned the decision, writing on X: “Whether it was accidental or planned. If you get tested twice with a banned (steroid) substance, you should be gone for two years. Your performance was enhanced.”

The case is reminiscent of the situation that led to Simona Halep’s original four-year ban, which was reduced to nine months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The two-time Grand Slam champion tested positive twice for the banned substance roxadustat and argued that she ingested it through a contaminated dietary supplement.

Former Wimbledon semi-finalist Denis Shapovalov, currently ranked 105th in the world, said he “couldn’t imagine how any other player feels now who has been banned for contaminated substances”, claiming there are “different rules for different players”.

Briton Liam Broady said “many players go through the same thing and have to wait months or years for their innocence to be declared,” referring to the fact that Sinner was allowed to continue playing but others were not.

But retired Australian John Millman said he was “appalled” at the way the cases of Halep and Britain’s Tara Moore – who also appealed after testing positive for contamination – were handled, and praised the ITIA for its handling of Sinner’s situation.

“Before you jump to conclusions: Jannik Sinner had less than a billionth of a gram in his body,” he said on X.

“I believe him 100%. Maybe we should change the limit to take contamination into account. And why all the fuss if we allow athletes in all sports, including tennis, to abuse medical exemptions?

“Plus, ITIA handled this 1000 times better than the mess they did with Simona. Jannik is pretty much the best person on tour. At least read the report before you judge.”