NEW YORK — Six months later Jannik Sinner failed two drug tests, and 2 1/2 weeks after being acquitted after saying traces of an anabolic steroid were inadvertently introduced into his system through a massage, the No. 1 tennis player will play in the US Open semi-finals.
His doping case, which has led some players to question whether Sinner was being treated differently to others because of his status in the sport, hangs like a dark cloud over his race to the last four in Flushing Meadows, where the 23-year-old Italian will face Britain’s Jack Draper, ranked 25th, on Friday. No. 12 Taylor Fritz plays No. 20 Frances Tiafoe in the other men’s semi-final, the first in New York between two Americans in 19 years.
Asked how he was able to concentrate on the court with everything going on outside, Sinner said: “Of course in the beginning … (it) was a difficult situation. But day by day it got better. So I’m happy with that. Now, in the semi-finals, let’s see what I can do.”
The International Tennis Integrity Agency said on August 20 that it had determined – and an independent tribunal agreed – that Sinner may not be suspended because he pleaded not guilty to testing positive for Clostebol twice in March, eight days apart. Sinner’s defense? His fitness trainer, Umberto Ferrara, bought an over-the-counter spray containing the drug in Italy and gave it to Sinner’s physical therapist, Giacomo Naldi, to treat a cut on Naldi’s finger. Naldi then gave Sinner a massage without wearing gloves.
Sinner said on the eve of the US Open that he had fired Ferrara and Naldi.
“These mistakes don’t make me feel confident enough to continue,” Sinner said. “All I need now (is) some clean air. I’ve been struggling a lot these last few months.”
The whole incident is of course a big topic of conversation in the tennis world. Novak Djokovic said he understands other players’ concerns about a possible “lack of consistency” in the process. Rafael Nadal said he did not believe Sinner wanted to use doping. Roger Federersaid, like Djokovic, that he understands why there were questions about a double standard and said, like Nadal, that he doesn’t think Sinner was trying to break the rules.
When Djokovic and Alcaraz lost in week 1Sinner became the favorite for the title, according to BetMGM Sports Betting. After defeating the 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinals As of Wednesday night, Sinner is the only player left in the field who has won a Grand Slam title. In January, he won the Australian Open.
“He’s a tough player to play against,” said Medvedev, who lost the final at Melbourne Park in five sets after winning the first two. “He has a good feel for the game. He often chooses the right shot at the right time.”
Draper, 22, and Fritz, 26, are making their first major semifinal appearances. Tiafoe, 26, reached the semifinals at Flushing Meadows two years ago but lost to eventual champion Alcaraz.
Sinner has reached the semi-finals of each of the four Grand Slams once and is particularly strong on hard courts, where he has a 33-2 record with four titles by 2024.
He is the only player left in the field to have won a Grand Slam trophy, although Sinner is not sure that relative advantage in experience still matters at this point.
“Whoever is in the quarter-finals, semi-finals or round of 16 deserves to be there,” he said. “There is no question of winning. You always have to find a solution against every opponent.”
Draper, who has never advanced beyond the fourth round at a major, is a left-handed, hard-hitting pitcher who has won all 15 sets he played at this US Open.
He and Sinner are friends and played doubles together in Montreal last month.
“We’ve always stayed in touch since I’ve been on tour the last few years. Jannik is a good friend, someone I’m absolutely close to. We message each other in good times and bad,” said Draper, the first British man to reach the semi-finals in New York since the recently retired Andy Murray won the title in 2012. “It’s a tough sport to play when you’re a young guy. You’re on the road, you’re playing such a relentlessly intense sport, both physically and emotionally, and it’s tough. We don’t have many friends. So to have the support of someone who’s been through it is really great.”
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Howard Fendrich has been AP’s tennis reporter since 2002. Here are his stories: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
