‘Not a good sign for tennis’ – Carlos Alcaraz strongly defends ‘innocent’ sinner Jannik in the face of shocking U-turn in WADA doping case

Jannik Sinner’s career has been a real rollercoaster lately. After impressive victories at the Cincinnati Masters and US Open, the Italian star now finds himself at the center of renewed doping controversy. Due to the shocking turn of events, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) turned to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), demanding a long-term ban for Sinner. This surprising move comes despite an ITIA ruling that previously cleared him of all charges. As the storm surrounding Sinner intensifies, many in the tennis world have shared their opinions, and the latest voice in the discussion is none other than Carlos Alcaraz.

Alcaraz interacted with the press at the China Open as he prepares for his quarterfinal against Karen Khachanov. When asked for his opinion on Sinner’s recent troubles, Alcaraz appeared to support the Italian dynamo. He expressed surprise at the whole matter and emphasized the impact of the whole situation on the tennis community.

In an interview, the Spaniard said: “This is a really delicate matter for Jannik and tennis in general. That is, once everything was settled, let’s say before Cincinnati, the ITIA found that Jannik Sinner said he did nothing wrong, and now it has come again, the case is open again. During the Indian Wells tournament, Sinner tested positive twice for low levels of the clostebol metabolite, a banned anabolic substance. However, the ITIA decision made before the US Open was in Sinner’s favor.

Sinner’s physiotherapist, Giacomo Naldi, was found to have used an over-the-counter spray containing clostebol to treat a cut on his own finger. Naldi then massaged Sinner without gloves, inadvertently transferring the substance into the player’s body. But Alcaraz finds the entire episode surprising. Continuing further he stated: “I thought it was already closed, everything would happen again, Jannik was innocent, and they saw that Jannik had done nothing wrong. This month I didn’t know what exactly happened. I just saw the news and it kind of surprised me. The 21-year-old once again emphasized the impact of this case on sport in general.

“I don’t know what it will be like in the coming months. “For sure tennis is a bad sign.” Alcaraz’s latest comments are also interesting because of his previous take on the whole matter, in which he subtly took aim at the world No. 1. Before the US Open, Alcaraz said that there is much more to this story than is known to the public and that he believes in the idea of ​​”pure sport.”

For those less in the know, WADA has taken a strong stance in the Sinner doping case, stating that the Independent Tribunal’s decision of no fault or negligence is inappropriate under applicable standards. She also demanded that the player be banned for at least 1 to 2 years. However, in stressful times, Alcaraz is not the only player who has rallied his support for the Italian star.

Former supporter Mark Petchey is rallying his continued support for Jannik Sinner

Despite growing problems, Jannik Sinner remains stoic. He expressed his innocence in the controversy and continued to insist that the entire episode happened accidentally and unintentionally. Although there has been a lot of criticism despite the ITIA ruling, some players have expressed their support for Sinner, and Mark Petchey is one of them.

In response to WADA’s latest appeal, Petchey sided with Sinner. Referring to X, the former British player wrote: “For the record, there is no scandal in the Sinner case. He and his lawyers worked within the rules applicable to the situation he found himself in and obtained a decision based on the evidence presented. No conspiracy, no hiding” He also seemed to question the entire trial and appeal. “INThe ADA looked into this case today and decided that it wanted to appeal the decision based on the finding that “no fault or negligence” is incorrect under applicable law. This is how the law works on a daily basis.“

For now, it would be interesting to see if more players and pundits show support for Sinner to ease some of the pressure on his shoulders. Will Sinner be able to maintain his dominance despite the troubles? Well, only time will tell.