Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic emphasized the need for proper protocols and standardized approaches, while pointing out various 'issues in the system' in tennis doping cases on Saturday. His comments came after it was revealed that top-ranked Jannik Sinner avoided a ban despite testing positive twice this year.
Italian player Sinner was exonerated of any fault or negligence last week, with the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) concluding that he was unintentionally contaminated with the substance by his physiotherapist, Giacomo Naldi.
Djokovic, fresh off his gold medal victory at the Paris Olympics, addressed the press as he prepares to defend his US Open title. He expressed that players voicing concerns about the lack of transparency in the Sinner case have a legitimate argument.
"I understand the frustration of the players is there because of lack of consistency. As I understood, his case was cleared the moment basically it was announced. But, you know, I think five or six months passed since the news (of the positive tests) was brought to him and his team'', Djokovic said.
Novak noted that there are numerous issues within the system, citing a lack of standardized and clear protocols. He acknowledged that many players are questioning whether they are being treated equally, expressing his understanding of their concerns.
"So, yeah, there is a lot of issues in the system. We see lack of standardized and clear protocols. I can understand the sentiments of a lot of players that are questioning whether they are treated the same'', he further told.
A number of players have implied that Sinner may have received preferential treatment due to his high ranking, questioning why he wasn’t provisionally suspended while the investigation that eventually cleared him was ongoing. On Friday, Sinner maintained that he was treated no differently than any other player.
"There is no shortcut, there is no different treatment, they are all the same process," Sinner responded to his critics.