Sinner An 'Inspiration' And 'Knows He Is Innocent' In Doping Case Says Coach Cahill

Saturday, 09 November 2024 at 23:17

byJordan Reynolds

Jannik Sinner's coach, Darren Cahill, feels the world No. 1 knows he can survive anything as a result of his doping case and feels inspired by the Italian's resilience.

It seemed like 2024 would be nothing but positive for Sinner after he won his maiden Australian Open title and became the world No. 1 for the first time after the French Open, overtaking Novak Djokovic.

However, the tennis world was shocked to learn that Sinner twice tested positive for the banned substance clostebol at the Indian Wells Open in March. That news was only revealed a few days before the US Open began in August.

After a private five-month investigation between the Indian Wells Open and when the news became public, Sinner was cleared of wrongdoing by the International Tennis Integrity Agency(ITIA) and avoided a ban.

The ITIA accepted Sinner's explanation that the clostebol entered his system accidentally after massages from his physiotherapist and decided the 23-year-old bore no fault for something he did not know about.

Unfortunately for Sinner, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) decided to appeal the case. Although the body did not dispute the Italian's story of how the clostebol entered his system, it feels Sinner bears some fault and that a ban of between one and two years would be appropriate.

The appeal's verdict is not expected until early 2025, meaning the case will remain on Sinner's mind until then. He has spoken previously about how protected Cahill made him feel in the months after learning about the positive tests in Indian Wells.

In an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, Cahill strongly supported Sinner, saying he is an inspiration. The Australian coach also believes his player did nothing wrong in the doping case.

"Jannik has understood that he can survive anything in life, after this he is no longer afraid of anything. Two Slams and number 1. Jannik is also an inspiration to me. Everyone talks about the team around him, but he is the leader."

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"He is the one who sets the path. He has done nothing wrong. He knows he is innocent. We will wait for the CAS verdict. In the meantime, Jannik will hold his head high."

While admitting that the news of the positive tests was the worst moment of the season, Cahill said Sinner could hold his head high after living through the long process of the doping case, which has been extended further after WADA's appeal.

"It was the worst moment of the season, when we received the news after the Miami tournament, but there is always calm after the storm. After a moment of shock, Jannik walked with his head held high knowing that he did nothing wrong. It has been a long process. People don't imagine it, you have to live it."

The Australian is also happy that even WADA accepts Sinner did not deliberately try and cheat. He also mentioned that competing during matches has acted as a safe space for him.

"If there is one positive thing in this new process, it is that WADA has not questioned whether Jannik is a clean player and that is the most important thing for us."

"He has always believed that the truth would come out and has used the field as his safe place. Every time he dresses as a tennis player and takes the racket in his hand, he feels safe because he is in the place he loves."