{"id":1311,"date":"2025-11-11T20:59:41","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T20:59:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/?p=1311"},"modified":"2025-11-11T20:59:41","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T20:59:41","slug":"every-word-novak-djokovic-said-as-he-questions-jannik-sinners-drug-ban-in-explosive-new-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/?p=1311","title":{"rendered":"Every word Novak Djokovic said as he questions Jannik Sinner\u2019s drug ban in explosive new interview"},"content":{"rendered":"

Novak Djokovic<\/a> has opened up in one of his most revealing interviews yet with Piers Morgan, with his comments on Jannik Sinner\u2019s<\/a> drug ban earlier this year one of the most eye-catching sections of a wide-ranging discussion.<\/p>\n

Sinner was banned for three months earlier this year after being found to have a banned anabolic steroid in his system, with the way his case was handled by tennis chiefs creating plenty of questions.<\/p>\n

The current Wimbledon champion successfully argued that the banned substance got into his system after he received a massage from a member of his team who had the steroid on his finger in error.<\/p>\n

That story sparked plenty of debate and when Djokovic was asked by Morgan to reflect on the circumstances around Sinner\u2019s case, he offered up typically frank views.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat cloud will follow him just as the cloud of Covid will follow me, for the rest of his, or my career in this case,\u201d said Djokovic, referencing his own controversy when he refused to take a Covid vaccine and was banned from several tournaments.<\/p>\n

More Tennis News<\/h2>\n

Exclusive: ITIA chief insists Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek did not get different treatment after failed drug tests<\/a><\/p>\n

What happened after Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek\u2019s failed drug tests? Full explainer<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just something that was so major and when that happens. You know, over time it will fade, but I don\u2019t think it will disappear. There\u2019s always going to be a certain group of people that will always try to bring that forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

Djokovic appeared to have most concern over how the case was handled, with Sinner taking his ban in a time of this tennis year that ensured he would not miss any Grand Slam events.<\/p>\n

\u201cLook, I\u2019ve know Jannik since he was probably 13 or 14 years of age because his first coach was my coach, Riccardo Piatti,\u201d continued Djokovic.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was practicing a lot with Sinner when he was a junior. I liked him a lot. He was skinny as I was, he was tall, grew up skiing on the mountains.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe always came across as very genuine, very nice, very quiet. He had his own world and didn\u2019t care too much about the lights of society. He just wanted to be the best player he can be and I liked that.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen this happened, I was shocked, honestly. I don\u2019t think he did it on purpose, but the way the case was handled, there were so many red flags, honestly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is the lack of transparency, the inconsistency, the convenience of the ban coming, between the Slams, so he doesn\u2019t miss out the others \u2013 it\u2019s just, it was very, very odd.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really don\u2019t like how the case was being handled and you could hear so many other players, both male and female, who had some similar situations coming out in the media, and complaining that it was a preferable treatment.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to believe (him). My history with him, I think, he didn\u2019t do it on purpose, but of course he is responsible. That\u2019s the rules. So when you see people who had something very similar or same being banned for years and he\u2019s banned for three months, it\u2019s not right.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not easy for him. I have empathy for him and the storm in the media that comes back at times<\/a>. It\u2019s not easy for him. And amid all that, he\u2019s playing incredible, winning Slams.\u201d<\/p>\n

The post Every word Novak Djokovic said as he questions Jannik Sinner\u2019s drug ban in explosive new interview<\/a> appeared first on Tennis365<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Novak Djokovic has opened up in one of his most revealing interviews yet with Piers Morgan, with his comments on Jannik Sinner\u2019s drug ban earlier this year one of the most eye-catching sections of a wide-ranging discussion. Sinner was banned for three months earlier this year after being found to have a banned anabolic steroid […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1311","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1311","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1311"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1311\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1311"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1311"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tennisring.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1311"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}