Jannik Sinner Aiming Join Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic In Elite Australian Open List

Jannik Sinner's reserved public persona belies a mature and steely 23-year-old who has shown supreme mental strength to put aside a doping scandal and make another Australian Open final. Sinner's status as Italy's biggest sporting star and the new dominant force in men's tennis has only risen over the past fortnight in Melbourne. With Spain's golden boy and chief rival Carlos Alcaraz long gone he has just one more hurdle to clear, against Alexander Zverev in Sunday's final, to become back-to-back champion.

Only three other men have managed the feat at Melbourne Park since the turn of the century -- Andre Agassi, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

Sinner has positioned himself to join them despite being dogged by controversy after twice testing positive for traces of the steroid clostebol in March.

Hanging over his head is a World Anti-Doping Agency appeal against his exoneration, the global body asking for Sinner to be banned for up to two years.

A hearing is scheduled at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) for April. He has denied knowingly doping.

"There's been a lot of pressure around him for the last nine months now, since April last year," said his coach Darren Cahill.

"He deals with it as well as anybody that I've ever seen deal with pressure. He's an amazing young man that's been able to put that to one side.

"He has a clear conscience with what's going on. That's the main reason he's been able to go onto the court and walk tall and have that belief and play with the confidence that he has."

Born in the northern Italian village of Innichen, a stone's throw from the Austrian border, a career in professional tennis was not a given for Sinner.

He was a champion skier as a youngster and still enjoys the sport in