TURIN, Italy — Sleepless nights. Constant thoughts of what went wrong — and how it could have been prevented.
Jannik Sinner opened up about his ongoing doping case after beating U.S. Open runner-up Taylor Fritz 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday to win the ATP Finals trophy before his home fans.
Sinner tested positive in two separate drug tests in March, and a decision to clear him of wrongdoing was appealed by the World Anti-Doping Agency in September. A final ruling is expected from the Court of Arbitration for Sport early next year.
Sinner’s explanation was that the banned performance enhancer entered his system unintentionally through a massage from his physiotherapist, who had used a spray containing the steroid to treat his own cut finger.
“I’ve kept on thinking about where we went wrong and what we could have done better,” the 26-year-old said in Italian. “I had days where I wasn’t feeling great; nights when I didn’t sleep well.