Former World No. 3 and 2009 US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro believes that “everyone has lost credibility” after Jannik Sinner accepted a three-month sanction following a positive test for a prohibited substance in March 2024.
Speaking from Rio de Janeiro, where he was invited to present the trophy at the ATP 500 event, del Potro shared his thoughts on one of the latest high-profile doping cases in tennis, following Iga Swiatek’s secret one-month suspension for doping last year.
“I don’t know many details; I’m not on the tour. But I can tell you the whole situation seems strange to me. He tested positive twice in Indian Wells, and before the US Open, the case became public, yet he wasn’t sanctioned. That seems odd to me, that for many months, people knew about it and didn’t say anything,” del Potro told the press, according to ESPN.
“I don’t understand why it was made public before the US Open if the case was already closed. I’m not saying whether he was innocent or not, whether it was the physio or the cream. But I think everyone lost some credibility here, the ATP, the anti-doping systems, Sinner’s image, the fans. I don’t think anyone came out of this with anything positive,” added the 22-time ATP titleholder.
Jannik Sinner will return to competition on May 4 (Graham Denholm/Getty Images)
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) imposed a three-month suspension on Sinner, who had been set to face a hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) next month and was initially facing a minimum one-year ban after testing positive twice for slim doses of clostebol, an anabolic steroid. However, he will now be eligible to return to competition on May 4, allowing him to play in the French Open and Wimbledon.
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Jannik Sinner’s three-month suspension explained
In a statement released on February 15, WADA confirmed Sinner’s three-month suspension after reaching an agreement with the player following their appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). This came after an Independent Tribunal found Sinner to bear no fault or negligence.
The agency accepted his explanation that clostebol entered his system through a spray applied by his physiotherapist to treat a cut. However, WADA maintained that Sinner should still face a penalty. In their statement, they acknowledged that “Mr. Sinner did not intend to cheat” but emphasized that “an athlete bears responsibility for the entourage’s negligence.”
Jannik Sinner won the 2025 Australian Open (Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)
Sinner’s lawyer, Jaime Singer, told Sky Sports that it “took a little bit of time to persuade him [Sinner] that it was actually the right thing to do – to accept WADA’s offer rather than going all the way to a CAS case. He says he feels that he’s been treated quite harshly, but he accepts that everyone’s entitled to their own opinion.”
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Since the first positive test, Sinner has added two more Grand Slam titles to his record. However, as the current World No. 1, he is projected to drop 2,100 points before his suspension ends.
