Jannik Sinner has said that he is “very disappointed and also surprised” after the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) announced that it would be appealing the decision to clear the Italian of a doping offence.
An independent tribunal found that the World No 1 was not at fault despite twice testing positive for a banned substance earlier this year.
Sinner secured his second grand slam title of the year at the US Open just 19 days after the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) announced that it accepted his explanation that the anabolic agent had entered his body after receiving massages from a member of his team.
But on Saturday, the 23-year-old’s future was thrown back into doubt after Wada announced an intention to challenge the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas).
Sinner, who beat Roman Safiullin on Saturday to reach the quarter-finals of the China Open, said he was surprised by WADA’s decision.
“We cannot control everything, no? Obviously I’m very disappointed and also surprised of this appeal, to be honest, because we had three hearings. All three hearings came out very positively for me,” he said after securing victory in Beijing.
“We always talk about the same thing. Maybe they just want to make sure that everything is in the right position. Yeah, I’m just surprised that they appealed.”
Sinner said his physio, Giacomo Naldi, applied an over-the-counter spray containing clostebol to his skin to treat a small finger wound and then administered massages between March 5 and 13 without using gloves, according to the ITIA.
A number of players have criticised the tribunal verdict, including Great Britain’s Tara Moore, who was sidelined for 19 months for failing a drug test before being cleared last year.
“I guess only the top players’ images matter,” she wrote on social media after the “no fault” decision was announced ahead of the US Open.
The ITIA said in a statement on Saturday: “The process was run according to World Anti-Doping Code guidelines; however, the ITIA acknowledges and respects Wada’s right to appeal the independent tribunal’s decision.”
Additional reporting by Reuters
