Although Jannik Sinner, the top seed in the world, is headed to his first-ever US Open final, his charge has left many with a “bad taste.”
Jannik Sinner, ranked #1 in the world, advanced through to his first-ever US Open final, dropping just two sets along the way.
After defeating British world No. 25 Jack Draper in straight sets amid wild scenes, Sinner scheduled a date with either Frances Tiafoe or Taylor Fritz.
After defeating Draper 7-5, 7-6, 6-2, the 2024 Australian Open winner positioned himself to potentially win his second grand slam title.
However, despite the fact that everyone seems to have finally come to terms with the fact that the Big Three era is over thanks to Novak Djokovic’s early withdrawal and that the new generation has officially arrived, there hasn’t been much hype surrounding Sinner’s remarkable charge because of his drug test controversy shortly before the event began.
It was discovered in late August that Sinner had tested positive for the illegal substance Clostebol twice: once during the Indian Wells tournament in March and again eight days later while not participating in competition.
However, an impartial panel concluded that Sinner was neither at fault nor negligent.
Experts concluded that the tests were a consequence of contamination from his physical therapist, Giacomo Naldi, because the amount in question was less than a billionth of a gram.
The Italian had “inadvertently” been exposed to the material, according to a statement from Sinner and the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), because of an ointment that was applied to a cut on Naldi’s finger.
According to the statement, “Jannik was using a product containing Clostebol, but he was unaware of this, and neither was his physiotherapist.”
“The unintentional contamination was caused by the physiotherapist treating Jannik without gloves and the different skin lesions on Jannik’s body.”
Sinner was “innocent” and “not at fault,” according to the ITIA.
But in compliance with anti-doping regulations, the 23-year-old lost his Indian Wells results and prize money.
After being fired, Sinner has since disclosed that he sacked Umberto Naldi, the fitness trainer who had allegedly given the over-the-counter spray to the physiotherapist.
However, it’s difficult to deny that the controversy has affected his play at the US Open.
“Hard not to think about how much more fun this Jannik Sinner run would have felt if we were still in the dark about his whole anti-doping saga this year,” tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg tweeted following Sinner’s victory over Medvedev.
“It just leaves a bad taste, the timing of that and the way it showed a lack of transparency at the top of tennis for months.”
And the topic has been discussed by many others on social media.
Tennis great Roger Federer stated that Sinner ought to have been suspended while the matter was looked at, saying it was not what the tennis community wanted to see.
Federer stated on the US Today show, “These kinds of news, whether he did something or not, are not something we want to see in our sport.”
Or any participant did. It’s simply noise, and we don’t want it. I can appreciate how frustrating it is to wonder, “Has he been treated the same as others?”
And this, in my opinion, is the crux of the matter. At the end, we all very much trust that he did nothing.
“I believe the point that has to be answered here is the potential inconsistency that he didn’t have to sit out when they weren’t really clear what was going on.
“These accusations and these issues are a difficult situation that every athlete and team fears.” We must have faith in both the procedure and all those concerned.
Djokovic demanded “standardised and clear protocols” prior to this.
Nonetheless, Rafael Nadal, the 22-time grand slam champion, defended Sinner, stating that he thought the Italian player had avoided punishment “because those who have had to judge this case have seen very clearly that there were no sanctions to be imposed.”
“I don’t think he will be punished for being a Sinner and for being punished for being someone else. On the Spanish television program El Hormiguero, Rafael Nadal stated, “I firmly think and feel that.
“Thereafter, other people’s viewpoints are also entirely legitimate. However, this is just my viewpoint.
Sinner said the match against Medvedev was “very tough” and “physical”.
“It was strange in the first two sets, whoever got the break started to roll,” he continued.
Sinner swept through the opening set on Wednesday (Thursday AEST) with a couple of breaks as the Russian committed 15 unforced errors to the Italian’s six.
However, fifth-ranked Medvedev flipped the script with a double break of his own to level the quarter-final.
In a to-and-fro battle, Sinner returned the favour by racing through the third set in just 30 minutes.
Medvedev patiently carved out two break points in the sixth game of the fourth set, both of which were saved.
That allowed Sinner to grab the initiative with the crucial break for 4-3 before going on to seal the victory.
Medvedev had to save 10 of 15 break points in the tie while his dream of making a 10th slam semi-final was undermined by 57 unforced errors.
