Andy Roddick discussed Jannik Sinner’s doping saga in light of the recent appeal from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The former American player doesn’t think Sinner would risk his legacy by doping.
Sinner is one of the best players in the world and has been for a while. His finish to the 2023 season was epic as he bested Novak Djokovic twice in a span of weeks to make the ATP Finals final and also win the Davis Cup for Italy.
The crowning moment came at the Australian Open a few months after that, where he won his maiden Grand Slam trophy by beating Daniil Medvedev in the final. The Italian bested Djokovic along the way as well and ascended to become the top player on the ATP Tour.
He then won in Rotterdam and made his way to Indian Wells, where the infamous contamination occurred. According to Roddick, it would make no sense that Sinner would dope intentionally because he had already become spectacularly good.
He said that the first time the news broke out, and he said it once more after it was announced that the case would be appealed by WADA, who didn’t agree with the initial decision from the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), who stated that the reigning World No. 1 had ‘no fault’ in the case.
“I don’t believe he is an idiot, I don’t think he is consciously going to do something that does enhance performance to risk legacy, reputation, time, chance at Slams, etc. I feel badly for Jannik.”
The way Roddick framed the case makes total sense. Sinner was already quite good, and there was very little benefit to doping. Even more, the amount found was so little that it wouldn’t have made any difference. As Roddick famously put it weeks ago, it would be the worst doping job ever done.
Roddick also looked at the timeline of the appeal, as it might directly impact Sinner’s chances of defending his title at the 2025 Australian Open. There is also a possibility that he would compete at the tournament and be banned immediately after.
“If it comes down the day after Christmas or sometime around then, he’s already gotten his training in for Australia, so that’s locked in. He’s already spent three weeks of his life being a psychopath about fitness, about everything else.”
“That lands, if it’s three months, he misses one, if it’s six months, he misses two, if it’s nine months, he misses three Slams. That is a massive thing for someone who is currently in their prime or at least building towards the last five percent of their prime.”
It’s not an ideal situation for Sinner, but he has handled it exceptionally well so far, and he hopes that he will be able to continue competing in the coming months as well.
