Jannik Sinner will never be able to erase the stigma of his positive doping tests and his ban from the sport, according to respected tennis broadcaster Marcus Buckland.
World No 1 Sinner ‘reached a deal’ with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to accept an immediate three-month suspension from tennis after he failed two doping tests for the anabolic steroid clostebol last year.
The Australian Open champion is suspended from February 9 until May 4 and will be back in time to play at the second Grand Slam of the year at the French Open.
His ban will conclude just before the Italian Open tournament in his homeland, with the timing of the ban one of many talking points emerging from the biggest talking point in tennis over the last year.
While Buckland is convinced Sinner is not guilty of deliberately doping, he suggests the 23-year-old will always be associated with a doping story that started with his positive tests in March of last year.
“The worst thing from Sinner’s point of view is how this looks and the timing of the suspension,” Buckland told Tennis365.
“Most people will confirm he was not trying to cheat, but the biggest problem for him is the outcome.
“This convenience issue is a big problem. The fact that he has been banned for three months, in between Slams and he can come back for Rome in his home country, I don’t think that has done him any favours at all.
The saddest thing for him is that this will now be associated with him for the rest of his career, whatever he achieves on the court.
“This story is coming to an end now, but tennis has become so tribal and this issue will not leave Sinner.
Be the first to comment