Frustrated Djokovic Says Players Kept in Dark over High-profile Doping Cases

Tennis - Exhibition - Juan Martin del Potro v Novak Djokovic - Estadio Mary Teran de Weiss, Buenos Aires, Argentina - December 1, 2024 Serbia's Novak Djokovic in action during an exhibition match REUTERS/Agustin Marcarian/File Photo
Tennis - Exhibition - Juan Martin del Potro v Novak Djokovic - Estadio Mary Teran de Weiss, Buenos Aires, Argentina - December 1, 2024 Serbia's Novak Djokovic in action during an exhibition match REUTERS/Agustin Marcarian/File Photo
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Frustrated Djokovic Says Players Kept in Dark over High-profile Doping Cases

Tennis - Exhibition - Juan Martin del Potro v Novak Djokovic - Estadio Mary Teran de Weiss, Buenos Aires, Argentina - December 1, 2024 Serbia's Novak Djokovic in action during an exhibition match REUTERS/Agustin Marcarian/File Photo
Tennis - Exhibition - Juan Martin del Potro v Novak Djokovic - Estadio Mary Teran de Weiss, Buenos Aires, Argentina - December 1, 2024 Serbia's Novak Djokovic in action during an exhibition match REUTERS/Agustin Marcarian/File Photo

Novak Djokovic expressed his frustration at being "kept in the dark" about world number one Jannik Sinner's doping case, saying in Brisbane on Sunday that it was not a good look for tennis.

Anti-doping authorities said in August Sinner twice tested positive in March for the anabolic androgenic steroid clostebol and was cleared of wrongdoing by an independent tribunal that accepted his explanation of unintentional contamination.

The 23-year-old Italian faces a potential ban of up to two years after the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed that decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, Reuters reported.

"It's not a good image and not a good look for our sport," Djokovic told reporters ahead of the Brisbane International.

"You don't want to see that. I believe that in the last 20-plus years that I've been playing on the professional tour that we've been one of the cleanest sports. I'll keep believing in that clean sport.

"I'm just questioning the way the system works, really, and why certain players are not treated the same as other players."

Sinner's was not the only recent high-profile case in the sport as world number two Iga Swiatek accepted a one-month ban that ended on Dec. 4 after a positive test for trimetazidine, which she said was due to contamination of her sleep medication.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency maintains that all doping cases are dealt with based on facts and evidence and not a player's name, ranking or nationality, but has not been able to fend off allegations of double standards.

"The issue is the inconsistency and the transparency. We've been kept in the dark with Jannik's case," Djokovic added.

"I'm not questioning whether he took the banned substance intentionally or not. I believe in a clean sport, I believe that the player will do everything possible to be playing fair.

"I've known Jannik since he was very young. He doesn't strike me as somebody who would do such a thing. But I've been really frustrated as (have) most of the other players to see that we've been kept in the dark for five months."

Outspoken Australian Nick Kyrgios said the cases involving Sinner and Swiatek were "disgusting" for the sport and slammed authorities over what he saw as lenient treatment.



Sinner, Djokovic in Opposite Halves at Australian Open, Sabalenka vs Stephens in 1st Round

09 January 2025, Australia, Melbourne: Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka (L) and Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner pose with Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup and the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup during the draw for the 2025 Australian Open tennis tournament, at Melbourne Park, Melbourne. Photo: Joel Carrett/AAP/dpa
09 January 2025, Australia, Melbourne: Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka (L) and Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner pose with Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup and the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup during the draw for the 2025 Australian Open tennis tournament, at Melbourne Park, Melbourne. Photo: Joel Carrett/AAP/dpa
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Sinner, Djokovic in Opposite Halves at Australian Open, Sabalenka vs Stephens in 1st Round

09 January 2025, Australia, Melbourne: Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka (L) and Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner pose with Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup and the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup during the draw for the 2025 Australian Open tennis tournament, at Melbourne Park, Melbourne. Photo: Joel Carrett/AAP/dpa
09 January 2025, Australia, Melbourne: Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka (L) and Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner pose with Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup and the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup during the draw for the 2025 Australian Open tennis tournament, at Melbourne Park, Melbourne. Photo: Joel Carrett/AAP/dpa

Defending champion Jannik Sinner and 10-time Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic have landed in opposite sides of the draw for the season’s first major, ruling out a replay of last year’s semifinal match.
Sinner upset Djokovic in the semifinals at the Australian Open last year before coming back to beat Daniil Medvedev in the final 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 for his first Grand Slam singles title.
Top-ranked Sinner has a first-round match against Nicolas Jarry and also has Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton and Medvedev in his quarter of the draw. Fritz will open against fellow American Jenson Brooksby.
Djokovic and No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz could meet in the quarterfinals, with a possible semifinal against No. 2 Alexander Zverev.
At the draw Thursday to set the brackets for the singles fields, defending champions Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka walked into the official ceremony holding thei trophies.
Sabalenka won her second consecutive title at Melbourne Park in 2024 by defeating Zheng Qinwen 6-3, 6-2 in the final. Sabalenka will be attempting to win a third consecutive women’s singles title at Melbourne Park, something last accomplished by Martina Hingis from 1997 to 1999.
Sabalenka drew a tough opening match against 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens and has 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva and Zheng in her section.
“I have a lot of great memories and to be back here ... as a two-time Australian Open champion, it’s definitely something special,” Sabalenka, who won the Brisbane International title last week, said at the draw ceremony. “I hope that I can keep doing what I’m doing here in Australia.”
Third-seeded Coco Gauff is a potential semifinal rival for Sabalenka. Gauff has a challenging first-round match against former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin and is in the same section of the draw as seventh-seeded Jessica Pegula.
The Australian Open starts Sunday morning in Melbourne (Saturday night EST) and will run for 15 days.
Djokovic will be playing in his first event alongside new coach Andy Murray, his former on-court rival and a three-time major champion. Nobody has won the men's title at Melbourne Park more often than Djokovic, although he said he still feels trauma from the one year he wasn’t allowed to play.
Nick Kyrgios, the 2022 Wimbledon runner-up who withdrew from an exhibition against Djokovic this week because of an abdominal strain, will face Jacob Fearnley in the first round if the mercurial Australian is fit enough to contest his first major since the 2022 US Open. Kyrgios is in the same section as Zverev.