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Jannik Sinner’s struggle with doping controversy despite tennis victories

Monicel
Jannik Sinner’s struggle with doping controversy despite tennis victories

Young Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner has opened up about losing his smile despite his success on the court due to a doping scandal. The 23-year-old is considered one of the best players currently playing in men’s tennis in the singles category along with Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and Serbia’s Novak Djokovic.
Sinner has been in sublime form of late. He became world number one during the French Open when Djokovic was forced to withdraw just before the start of the quarter-finals against Norway’s Casper Ruud due to a knee injury. The San Candido native recently took part in the Shanghai Masters, where he lifted the title after beating Djokovic in the final 7-6, 6-3. This year was his seventh title and with that he will surely finish 2024 as world number one.

However, despite all the success, Sinner has admitted to losing his smile due to a doping scandal. The two-time Grand Slam winner tested positive for a banned substance in two tests but escaped a ban after the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted his lawyer’s response that the presence of the banned substance in the player’s sample was because he received cream to treat an injury from a member of the coaching staff.

“Well, I know this year has been really, really hard for me because of other circumstances,” he said. “You know, at some points I lost a little smile because I had some problems off the court, and then they” Sometimes I still find myself in my mind. You know, people think that, you know, winning or being successful you don’t have a problem, but it’s not true, you know, because that’s the situation that I’m in. I’m in, obviously, it’s not comfortable, and I wish I wasn’t in this position where I’m off the court right now, playing more freely on the court, and trying to even enjoy it a little bit more. You know, you have to accept it, of course, I have moments when I think about it, which is not the best part.

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