 "Novak Djokovic is the defending champion going into the 2024 US Open. File image: USA Today Sports/Reuters")
Novak Djokovic called for “clear protocols” and “standardised approaches” to tennis doping cases in response to the announcement that Jannik Sinner had escaped a ban despite two positive tests this year. Carlos Alcaraz, another title contender at the US Open, said it is “complicated” but stressed on playing “clean sport”.
Djokovic, speaking to reporters as he prepared to defend his US Open title, said players who have bemoaned a lack of transparency in the Sinner case make a valid point.
“I understand the frustration of the players is there because of lack of consistency,” the 24-time Grand Slam champion said.
“As I understood, his case was cleared the moment basically it was announced. But, you know, I think five or six months passed since the news (of the positive tests) was brought to him and his team.
“So, yeah, there is a lot of issues in the system,” Djokovic said. “We see lack of standardised and clear protocols. I can understand the sentiments of a lot of players that are questioning whether they are treated the same.”
Several players have suggested Sinner received special treatment because of his ranking, asking why he was not provisionally suspended as the investigation that exonerated him played out.
Sinner, however, has insisted he was treated the same as any other player.
“There is no shortcut, there is no different treatment, they are all the same process,” Sinner said.
The 23-year-old Italian was notified in March that he had tested positive for low levels of the banned anabolic agent clostebol during the Indian Wells Masters.
An out-of-competition test eight days later was also positive.
Sinner said he was, in fact, provisionally suspended for several days, although it was not made public at the time.
But he and his camp quickly appealed on grounds the drug entered his system when his physiotherapist used a spray containing it to treat a cut, then provided massage and sports therapy to the player.
He was allowed to continue playing as investigators studied the case, with the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) announcing on Tuesday he had been cleared of wrongdoing.
He said he had fired physio Giacomo Naldi and trainer Umberto Ferrara — who supplied Naldi with the spray — citing a loss of confidence in them.
‘Things we don’t know’
World number three Alcaraz, indicated he thought there was more to the case than had been made public, but he declined to criticise the ITIA decision.
“A really difficult moment for him. I’m not gonna lie, it is complicated. Well, I believe in a clean sport. You know, I am pretty sure that there are a lot of things that we don’t know, you know, inside the team or inside everything,” Alcaraz said. “But if they let Jannik to keep playing, (it’s) for something. They said he’s innocent, so that’s all I know and that’s all I can talk about.”
Djokovic said the case was a prime example of why the sport needs the controversial Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), which he helped found to give players a greater voice in the sport.
He wondered whether some such cases could be resolved with little publicity, like Sinner’s, because the player had the funds to hire expensive, efficient legal representation while other players lacked that ability.
“I don’t know,” Djokovic said. “Is that a case or not? That’s something really I feel like we have to collectively investigate more, to look into the system and understand how these cases don’t happen, meaning not the case itself, but how we can standardize everything so that every player, regardless of his ranking or status or profile, is able to get the same kind of treatment.”