Jannik Sinner said he “didn’t feel at ease” during the Australian Open in January and considered taking a break from tennis after he was sanctioned for two anti-doping violations.
Sinner, men’s world No 1, twice tested positive for banned anabolic steroid clostebol in March 2024. The Italian, who was found by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) to bear “no fault or negligence” for the two violations, accepted a three-month ban in February after reaching a case resolution agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
Sinner opened his 2025 season by winning his second consecutive Australian Open title in January, defeating Alexander Zverev in straight sets in the final. In an interview with Italian broadcaster TG1, Sinner said he “thought about taking some time off” after the Melbourne major and felt a shift in how he was perceived by his peers.
“I remember the Australian Open this year. I didn’t really feel at ease in the locker room, in the player dining area,” said Sinner. “There were some players that looked at me differently, and I didn’t really like it. It’s heavy, to live tennis this way — I was always someone who joked around, who went in the locker room talking with this person, that person, anyone — and at that time I was a different person, I didn’t feel at ease.
“At that time I said to myself, maybe some time off after Australia, a break for a little bit, would do me good.”
Sinner withdrew from the Rotterdam Open, the ATP 500 event in the Netherlands that takes place just over a week after the Australian Open final. At the time, he said he needed to give his body “time to rest,” missing an event at which he was defending champion.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) appealed the ITIA’s finding in September and sought a period of ineligibility of at least a year, but later deemed a three-month ban an “appropriate outcome.”
Sinner was free to resume training from April 13, having parted ways with trainer Umberto Ferrara and physiotherapist Giacomo Naldi following the initial decision in his case. He is set to return to competition at the Italian Open in May.
“Sometimes it goes very well, at other times there is a drop and I don’t know why,” he said about his level in training. “I will be very happy to return to the match court, especially in Rome, a very special tournament for me … I miss competition.”
(Photo: Graham Denholm / Getty Images)
