Simona Halep and Nick Kyrgis against Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner: is their anger unjustified or not? The Romanian believes she has suffered an injustice, considering the way her case was handled compared to the events involving the Polish and the Italian.
Simona was immediately stopped after testing positive for Roxadustat, and only after the last appeal to the CAS did she see her disqualification go from four years to nine months. Her defense was in fact able to demonstrate that the positivity was linked to an involuntary contamination of the supplement.
Things went differently for Swiatek and Sinner, but we are talking about issues quite different from that of Halep. The Polish player has accepted the one-month suspension imposed by ITIA for the failed test due to the presence of a prohibited substance, namely trimetazidine. A substance present in a drug (melatonin) bought by the former WTA number 1 in Poland.
The story is even different for Sinner, who, despite having been acquitted by the Independent Tribunal of the ITIA, will still have to wait for the CAS verdict after the appeal by WADA.
“That player, I don’t want to mention the name and you know who I’m talking about, she had a three-week suspension, then she played two tournaments before receiving another suspension. I don’t understand. So I think it’s not right. It’s not right that my case was announced immediately receiving pressure from the press. For these two players (Halep obviously refers to Swiatek and Sinner, ed.) they kept everything secret by speaking about their case only at the end. It’s very strange,” she said to The Daily Telegraph.
“I also asked to revoke the provisional suspension so I can play. I said: If in the end you believe that I am guilty, take back the points and all the money, but let me play. I wanted to keep the pace. I asked two or three times and then I see them play,” she added.
Iga Swiatek© Stream screenshot
In the meantime, after knee problems and surgery on his right wrist, Nick Kyrgios will return to the court in 2025 at the ATP 250 tournament in Brisbane, scheduled from December 29 to January 5, 2025. But once again the Australian has been the protagonist on social media, targeting both Jannik and Iga.
The latest criticism, not too veiled, dates back only a few hours ago, when Nick published an update on his physical condition on X, in view of his return. The 29-year-old concluded his comment with some rather provocative words.
“It’s nice to have banked so many consecutive days of training. My wrist is rebuilt and I’m back on the court, without failing any doping tests,” he said.
The former top ten’s comments, often excessive, always create a lot of controversy. Many have expressed their disappointment towards the Australian. One of these came from former English tennis player Mark Petchey, who wanted to defend the two Slam champions, throwing a dig at the former Wimbledon finalist
“Nick is fed up, he has to give it a rest: Sinner has been found innocent, or am I wrong? In a few weeks, WADA’s appeal will be examined and we simply have to wait for the process to take its course. It’s a very serious matter, which must be treated with kid gloves, with care and with seriousness, because a colleague’s career is at stake,” he said.
Jannik Sinner© FITP Tennis/Instagram – Fair Use
Nick’s anger towards Jannik and Iga I think is perhaps an exaggeration, but we know that the Australian’s character is like this and, for better or for worse, it has to be accepted. It’s a different story for Halep. As different as her situation is from that of Swiatek and Sinner, the Romanian sees a strong disparity in treatment, so it’s normal that her reaction is rather irritated. It’s understandable. However, the advice I give to both Kyrigos and Halep is to channel their anger into training, to demonstrate their thoughts on the court through performances, because the situation it’s making too much drama.
We recall that Iga has only a few days of disqualification to serve and, therefore, will be able to regularly start the next official events in which he will take part.
As for Jannik, as mentioned, we will have to wait, as his story is more intricate. The Italian will have to wait at least until mid-February to have the final verdict of the CAS regarding his doping issue. After being acquitted by the independent tribunal ITIA following two failed doping tests at the last BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, WADA appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, asking for 1-2 years of disqualification. According to rumors coming from circles close to players and institutions, there is talk of a more reduced disqualification: Jannik could receive 3 or a maximum of 6 months.
Sinner and Swiatek© X / Twitter
Tennis World USA