How Jannik Sinner's Schedule Will Be Impacted By Date Of CAS Hearing
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Jannik Sinner recently received the date for his hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding his doping case. This will disrupt his planned schedule for 2025.
Sinner's doping case has turned into a long-running saga. He twice tested positive for the banned substance clostebol at March's Indian Wells Open, but that was kept private while the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) carried out an investigation.
After five months, the ITIA determined that Sinner bore no fault for the positive tests. The governing body accepted his explanation of accidental contamination via massages from his physiotherapist at the time.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) disagreed with the ITIA's verdict and appealed the case to CAS in October. WADA does not dispute Sinner's explanation of how the contamination happened but argues he bears some fault for the violation.
Sinner had to wait a few months for a date to be given in his case. The Italian's ability to stay focused on the court during the uncertainty was highly impressive. He won the ATP Finals and the Davis Cup after WADA's appeal.
Nonetheless, the uncertainty surrounding the case seemed like it was wearing on Sinner. The World No. 1 admitted in a press conference before the Australian Open that it was impossible to forget about the case when preparing for the tournament.
Sinner did not know the hearing date when he made those comments. Mere hours later, CAS confirmed that the appeal hearing would occur on April 16th and 17th at its headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.
While knowing the date will not remove all of Sinner's anxiety, it might provide some minor relief. The two-time Grand Slam champion at least knows when the ordeal will end, regardless of the outcome.
Sinner was scheduled to compete during the week of the CAS hearing. It will be especially disappointing for the 23-year-old because he and his team made a specific change to improve his schedule for this season.
Sinner's coach, Darren Cahill, thinks the turnaround time between his player's run to last year's Miami Open final and the clay court season was too quick. Sinner's first tournament of 2024 on clay was at the Monte-Carlo Masters.
Those comments strongly implied that the young star would not appear at this year's iteration of the Monte-Carlo Masters, the only non-mandatory Masters 1000 tournament on the ATP Tour.
The likelihood of Sinner skipping the event in Monte Carlo was even higher after he signed up for the Munich Open, an ATP 500 tournament taking place the week after the Monte Carlo Masters from April 14th to 20th.
However, that will no longer be possible because of the CAS hearing. It is a disruption to Sinner's plan for the clay court season and a blow to the tournament in Munich, which would have sold many tickets because of the Italian's presence.
Sinner could decide to play in Monte Carlo now that he cannot compete at the Munich Open, but the quick turnaround after the Miami Open and how anxious he will undoubtedly be feeling ahead of the CAS hearing makes that far from certain.
