Jannik Sinner’s recent escape from a doping ban has caused a stir in the tennis world. After WADA appealed for a harsher penalty, many players, including Nick Kyrgios and Denis Shapovalov, questioned the initial decision to clear Sinner. They felt it was unfair to other players who had received bans for contaminated substances. However, Andy Roddick has stepped in to offer his perspective on the situation.
During the recent episode of ‘Served’, Andy Roddick debunked all the myths surrounding Sinner’s favoritism tag. He said, “Imagine waking up, and getting an email. You not knowing, what the hell is happening but all of a sudden getting an email that says you’ve tested positive for something you can’t spell and then panic ensues. If it takes you more than 2 days to actually know the source, figure it out, organize, talk to your team, alk to everyone else, get to know the problem, to solve the problem which Jannik Sinner did within that 48 hours!”
Andy Roddick said since Sinner managed to do these within this short time span, he was given some time grace and didn’t have to stop playing. He feels problems arise when in other cases they don’t know where it came from and they need more time and can’t even afford an army of lawyers quickly. Because it’s not just about a “guess”, one has to submit a formal thing with confidence. As this is what their cases are going to be based of.
“Jannik Sinner did that, which is why people are saying ‘he got special treatment,’” further said Roddick. “I said during the US Open, if they had suspended him for 6 months, I wouldn’t have blinked. Like I understand that we have some responsibility for our team in our surroundings.”
Andy Roddick has reiterated his belief that Jannik Sinner did not intentionally commit a doping offense. While he acknowledges that he could be wrong, he remains convinced of Sinner’s innocence: “If you can afford a fancy lawyer, you normally get to a result faster and softer than you know if you don’t.” What are Jannik Sinner’s thoughts on this “preferential treatment” tag, though?
In August 2024, during an interview, Jannik Sinner reiterated that he was not given any preferential treatment in doping case. “Obviously, being where I am, I have the ability to take qualified people. Obviously, if this happens to a different player, it’s going to be different, but again, I was treated like everyone else,” claimed Sinner.
He further added that the reason why he kept playing was only because his team knew exactly how the banned substance entered into his system and where this Clostebol was from. If that wouldn’t be the case, then perhaps things could’ve been a bit different for him too! Who knows?
On one hand, some of his peers heavily criticized Jannik Sinner in this doping saga. However, on the other side, there are some like Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev, who have stood beside the Italian in his tough times. After hearing the recent appeal from WADA, Alcaraz said,
“I know that it is a very difficult point. It is difficult for him. I know everyone is talking about it, the news is talking about it…I feel for him.” He even wishes to see Sinner quickly get out of all these things and put his full focus back on his game. Medvedev also joined the likes of Carlos Alcaraz to raise his concern about Sinner on this issue.
“It’s a tricky situation. I’m the same a little bit like Carlos (Alcaraz). I’m sympathetic to Jannik (Sinner),” said Medvedev. He further added that Sinner knows what he needs to do. Perhaps WADA is doing what they need to do. So, perhaps the outsiders need to wait and watch how things take the course in the next few weeks. Share your thoughts on Jannik Sinner getting support from the tennis family.
