Jannik Sinner makes ‘respect’ comment following Matteo Berrettini support
Jannik Sinner admitted that compatriot Matteo Berrettini showed him “a lot of respect” after his fellow Italian publicly backed him following the news of his doping sanction.
It emerged last week that the world No 1 was of “no fault” after twice testing positive for banned steroid clostebol, with the ITIA clearing him of any “negligence” regarding the case.
Sinner was not banned at any point with his only sanction being the removal of his Indian Wells ranking points and prize money, with one of the two positive tests coming midway through the tournament.
However, despite being cleared by the ITIA there has been a mixed reaction from Sinner’s fellow players, with some questioning the leniency of the sanction, and the circumstances that allowed him to compete under investigation.
But, speaking ahead of the tournament, 2021 Wimbledon finalist and Sinner’s Davis Cup compatriot Berrettini was among the 23-year-old’s most significant backers.
“I complimented him [in the locker room]. No one would want to be in his shoes, but I know him well and I’m sure it was a mistake,” said the former world No 6.
“I saw something different in his eyes, maybe less joy than usual. When it all came out, I understood what was going on. It’s impressive how he handled the situation, he got great results despite everything.
“We talked in the locker room, just by looking into each other’s eyes, we understood how difficult it was to handle this situation.”
US Open News
Daniil Medvedev makes ‘scared’ admission as he speaks out on Jannik Sinner doping case
Carlos Alcaraz opens up on his relationship with Novak Djokovic as he makes ‘no friends’ admission
Amid the furore, Sinner started his US Open campaign with a four-set victory over Mackenzie MacDonald on Tuesday.
And, speaking after the match, the world No 1 admitted he was “very happy” with what his compatriot had said in his defence.
Sinner commented: “I am very happy with what Matteo said, we know each other well and we respect each other a lot.
“We also know how we are as people, he showed me a lot of respect, it was a great honour. This situation taught me who is my friend and who is not, I understood how important sport is, but also life outside of tennis, that there are many things worse than what I experienced.
“On the court we [Sinner and his team] lost a few weeks of work – I was not ready to change something in my game, now we are working on it better than ever, hoping that everything goes well.”
The Australian Open champion will be back in action on Thursday against rising US star Alex Michelsen.
