Tennis World No. 1 Jannik Sinner Breaks Silence On Avoiding Ban Despite Failing Dope Tests

Tennis world number one Jannik Sinner said Friday he was relieved to escape a doping ban after twice testing positive for a banned substance, even though "in my mind I know that I haven't done anything wrong." The 23-year-old Italian spoke publicly for the first time since the International Tennis Integrity Agency cleared him this week of wrongdoing, accepting his explanation that the drug entered his system when his physiotherapist used a spray containing it to treat a cut, then provided massage and sports therapy to the player.

Sinner tested positive for low levels of the banned anabolic agent clostebol in March -- once during the Indian Wells Masters and again in an out-of-competition test eight days later.

Sinner was stripped of his results, prize money and 400 ranking points he accumulated at Indian Wells, but the ITIA confirmed this week that an independent tribunal found that he "bears no fault or negligence" for the violations.

Sinner said the months-long process was a nerve-wracking experience, and he rejected suggestions he had received any special treatment because of his lofty ranking.

"No, it's every player who gets tested positive has to go through the same process," Sinner said at a news conference at the US Open which starts Monday.

"There is no shortcut, there is no different treatment, they are all the same process."

He said he was able to keep playing, without a lengthy provisional suspension, because his team immediately pinpointed the fact that physio Giacomo Naldi had used a spray containing the drug to treat a cut finger.

He'd been given the spray by Sinner's trainer Umberto Ferrara.

Sinner confirmed that he had now cut ties with both men, citing a loss of confidence in them.

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