Nick Kyrgios reacts to Jannik Sinner doping ban: ‘Bad day for tennis’

The controversial Australian provided a predictable reaction on social media after the world No.1 struck an agreement with Wada after failing two anti-doping tests

Nick Kyrgios provided a predictable reaction to Jannik Sinner accepting a three-month doping ban after reaching an agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada), and claimed that other tennis players share his view.

The controversial Australian has been vocal about the Italian and what he perceived as lenient treatment compared to other players.

The men’s world No 1, who claimed his third grand slam title after winning the Australian Open last month in dominant fashion and will return for this year’s French Open, twice returned a positive test for the banned substance clostebol last March.

But after initially being cleared of wrongdoing by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), having given evidence to prove he had been contaminated by his physiotherapist, Wada appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas), leading to a three-month ban.

“Bad day for tennis,” Kyrgios stated, while labelling the news as “dodgy”.

He later added: “So Wada come out and say it would be a one to two year ban. Obviously, Sinner’s team have done everything in their power to just go ahead and take a three month ban, no titles lost, no prize money lost. Guilty or not? Sad day for tennis. Fairness in tennis does not exist.”

Kyrgios then teased a wider, public discussion over the decision, hinting other players share his views and would join him on a live space on X to debate the matter.

He said: “I know a lot of players that are feeling the same way at the moment so looking to hold live spaces next week so we can talk about it - stay tuned for exact time.”

Wada confirmed the news in a statement: “Mr Sinner will serve his period of ineligibility from 9 February 2025 to 11:59 pm on 4 May 2025.”

Wada accepted that Sinner “did not intend to cheat” or receive “any performance-enhancing benefit” and that he was inadvertently contaminated “without his knowledge as the result of negligence of members of his entourage”.

It added: “However, under the code and by virtue of Cas precedent, an athlete bears responsibility for the entourage's negligence. Based on the unique set of facts of this case, a three-month suspension is deemed to be an appropriate outcome.”

Jannik Sinner poses with Australian Open trophy in front of the Melbourne skyline last month (Mark Baker/AP)

Sinner said in a statement: “This case had been hanging over me for nearly a year and the process still had a long time to run with a decision maybe only at the end of the year.

“I have always accepted that I am responsible for my team and realise Wada’s strict rules are an important protection for the sport I love. On that basis I have accepted Wada’s offer to resolve these proceedings on the basis of a three-month sanction.”

The Italian tested returned two positive tests for traces of clostebol during and just after last year’s Indian Wells tournament in Miami. The result triggered an adverse analytical finding (AAF) and an automatic provisional suspension, but the suspension was quickly lifted when Sinner’s legal team filed an urgent application.

During a subsequent tribunal, Sinner’s lawyers explained his contamination by presenting evidence that his fitness trainer purchased a spray “easily available over the counter in any Italian pharmacy” which was given to the player’s physiotherapist, Giocomo Naldi, to help treat a minor cut on Naldi’s finger. Naldi regularly massaged Sinner during the Indian Wells tournament, without wearing gloves.

Sinner’s lawyers claimed that because the player had “various skin lesions” on his body due to a skin condition called psoriasiform dermatitis, the spray – which contained clostebol – must have passed from the physio’s hands through to Sinner and caused the positive test results.

Sinner sips champagne after tasting success in Melbourne (AP)

The independent tribunal consulted three scientific experts, including Professor David Cowan of King’s College London, the former head of the KCL’s Wada [World Anti-Doping Agency]-accredited lab. All three experts concluded that Sinner’s explanation was plausible.

They noted that Sinner tested for only small concentrations of clostebol. On 10 March, he tested for 121pg/mL of the substance, and on 18 March he tested for 122pg/mL. The Trofodermin spray contained 5mg/mL of clostebol acetate.

Professor Cowan said: “Even if the administration had been intentional, the minute amounts likely to have been administered would not have had ... any relevant doping, or performance-enhancing, effect upon the player.”

The handling of Sinner’s case has received scrutiny and criticism from current and former players, with questions about why the case was kept secret for several months and why he was allowed to continue playing before any resolution was found.

It follows the case of Iga Swiatek, who accepted a one-month suspension in November after testing positive for a banned substance while she was the women’s world No 1.