Six months after Jannik Sinner failed two drug tests, and 2½ weeks after he was exonerated because he said trace amounts of an anabolic steroid entered his system unintentionally via a massage, the No. 1-ranked man in tennis will play in the U.S. Open semi-finals.
His doping case, which raised questions from some players about whether Sinner was treated differently than others on account of his standing in the sport, has loomed over his run to the final four at Flushing Meadows, where the 23-year-old Italian will face No. 25 Jack Draper of Britain on Friday. No. 12 Taylor Fritz plays No. 20 Frances Tiafoe in the other men’s semi-final, the first in New York between two Americans in 19 years.
Asked how he’s been able to stay focused on court with everything going on off it, Sinner said: “Obviously in the beginning … [it] was a tough situation. But day by day, it went better. So I’m happy about that. Let’s see now, in the semis, what I can do.”
Sinner’s doping exoneration
The International Tennis Integrity Agency said on Aug. 20 that it determined – and an independent tribunal agreed – that Sinner should not be suspended because he was not at fault for testing positive twice, eight days apart, in March for Clostebol. Sinner’s defence? His fitness trainer, Umberto Ferrara, purchased an over-the-counter spray in Italy that contained that drug and gave it to Sinner’s physiotherapist, Giacomo Naldi, to treat a cut on Naldi’s finger. Naldi then gave Sinner a massage while not wearing gloves.
Sinner said on the eve of the U.S. Open that he had fired Ferrara and Naldi.
Is Sinner favoured to win the title?
When Djokovic and Alcaraz lost in Week 1, Sinner became the favourite for the title, according to BetMGM Sportsbook. After defeating 2021 U.S. Open champion Daniil Medvedev in the quarter-finals Wednesday night, Sinner is the only man left in the field who has won a Grand Slam title, having triumphed at the Australian Open in January.
“He’s a tough player to play against,” said Medvedev, who lost the final at Melbourne Park in five sets after taking the first two. “He feels the game well. He chooses the right shot at the right moment many times.”
Draper, 22, and Fritz, 26, are participating in the semi-finals at a major for the first time. Tiafoe, 26, made it to the semis at Flushing Meadows two years ago before losing to eventual champion Alcaraz.
Sinner has been to the semi-finals at each of the four Slams once and is particularly strong on hard courts, where he is 33-2 with four titles in 2024.