“He will understand who’s his best friend,” Roger Federer’s ex-coach Ivan Ljubicic reveals what Jannik Sinner will face at the US Open following the Italian’s doping controversy
World No. 1 Jannik Sinner has been all over the news over the last few weeks following his doping controversy.
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Ivan Ljubicic and Jannik Sinner (via X/Imago)
Roger Federer’s ex-coach Ivan Ljubicic has revealed what Jannik Sinner will face among other players following his doping controversy. The Italian’s doping saga has stirred a storm in the tennis world after he was not suspended despite testing positive for a banned anabolic steroid twice in March.
On Tuesday (August 20), the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) reported that Sinner bore “no fault or negligence” for the two positive doping tests in March. According to the report, the Italian defended that Clostebol entered his system after his ex-physiotherapist had massaged him with an over-the-counter spray that contained the banned substance. The 23-year-old was not suspended but only stripped of his Indian Wells ranking points and prize money.
Following the ITIA’s ruling, several players and legends have admitted that the tennis body was partial and only protected high-ranked players. Notable among them was Tara Moore. The British doubles player who was suspended for 19 months by the ITIA slammed the tennis body for its unfair judgment.
The Italian is already at the US Open and is hoping to put the doping saga behind him. But, Roger Federer’s ex-coach Ivan Ljubicic has revealed that Sinner will understand who is his best friend among other players.
What if the opponents' perception of Sinner changes? Twenty years ago we played with smaller teams, now it is more difficult to have relationships with other players. But as he said, he will understand who is his best friend and who sees him in a another way. In the first few days he will feel stranger, but then he will forget everything: he will try to win which is the only thing that matters.Ivan Ljubicic told Sky Sports as cited by Quindici Zero on X
Ivan Ljubicic su Jannik Sinner:
— Quindici Zero ? (@quindicizero) August 25, 2024
"Se cambia la percezione degli avversari su Sinner? Venti anni fa si girava con dei team più piccoli, adesso è più difficile avere delle relazioni con altri giocatori. Ma come ha detto lui, capirà chi gli è più amico e chi lo vede in un altro… pic.twitter.com/vmhW99sp0u
Sinner will open his US Open campaign against American MacKenzie McDonald in the first round. The 23-year-old is seeking his second career Grand Slam after winning his first at the Australian Open in January.
Jannik Sinner parted ways with two of his coaching staff following the doping saga
Jannik Sinner confirmed that he parted ways with two of his coaching staff after the ITIA cleared him from any suspension. Sinner’s physiotherapist Giacomo Naldi and fitness coach Umberto Ferrara had a major hand in the Italian testing positive for Clostebol.
Ferrara and Naldi have both helped Sinner achieve success over the past two seasons, including his Australian Open victory in January. However, the World No.1 has revealed that he is not confident working with them ahead of the US Open.
Because of these mistakes, I'm not feeling that confident to continue with them. The only thing I just need right now, just some clean air. You know, I was struggling a lot in the last months. Now I was waiting for the result, and now I just need some clean air.Jannik Sinner said to the reporters
Sinner will hope that the doping saga doesn’t distract him at the US Open. He will be under immense pressure in each of his matches but will have to relieve himself of it by winning.
In case you missed it:
- Jannik Sinner’s ex-physio Giacomo Naldi accuses media of ‘destroying’ his ‘reputation’ amidst the doping scandal
- “It’s really going to help her,” Mats Wilander believes ‘stagnated’ Coco Gauff will be uplifted by the US crowd
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Victor Okechukwu
(688 Articles Published)