Deadspin | Djokovic: 'Favoritism' obvious in light Sinner doping ban

Novak Djokovic celebrates after match point against Jannik Sinner during a quarterfinals mens singles match on Centre court at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Mandatory Credit: Peter van den Berg-Imagn Images

Novak Djokovic no longer trusts the international drug-testing and enforcement process in tennis, citing “favoritism” in the recent three-month suspension for World No. 1 Jannik Sinner.

Sinner twice tested positive for the synthetic anabolic steroid Clostebol in March 2024 but the International Tennis Integrity Agency found his support team at fault in light of the Italian star claiming he applied the steroid accidentally and without his knowledge through a recovery and healing spray.

The World Anti-Doping Agency appealed the ruling at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, resulting in an agreement to a three-month suspension rather than the typical punishment: a complete ban from training and competition for 1-2 years.

In 2024, Poland’s Iga Swiatek received only a one-month suspension for violating the anti-doping policy.

“There’s a majority of the players that I’ve talked to in the locker room, not just in the last few days, but also last few months, that are not happy with the way this whole process has been handled,” Djokovic said.

“The majority of the players don’t feel it’s fair. The majority of the players feel there is favoritism happening. It appears that you can almost affect the outcome if you’re a top player, if you have access to the top lawyers and whatnot. Swiatek and Sinner are innocent unless it’s proven otherwise. Right now they are innocent. Sinner’s got a suspension of three months because of the mistakes and the negligence of his team members that are working on the tour. That’s also something that I personally and a lot of players find a bit strange.”

Sinner was still active in January and won the Australian Open, his third major title. He is suspended from Feb. 9 until May 4, a timeline Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam winner, found too convenient given there are no majors contested during that timeframe. The French Open begins May 25.

American Jessica Pegula and Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz took a less aggressive position but called for an overhaul of a system that appears to benefit top players.

“If you are clean or not, the process is completely broken. I think it needs to be seriously looked at and considered,” Pegula said. “I feel they have so much power that they can destroy someone’s career, and I think something needs to be done about it because it seems extremely unfair. I don’t think any of the players trust the process at all right now.”

Others quickly raised an issue with Sinner being spotted on the practice courts on Feb. 13 in Doha, five days after the purported ban was to be in effect. WADA said the date of the suspension was retroactive and not official until the public announcement Feb. 15.

–Field Level Media