Jannik Sinner wasn’t sure what people would think. Would they boo? Heckle? Would they take a cynical lead from Nick Kyrgios?
Did people think he was the world No.1 who got preferential treatment in a drug case? Or just the reigning open champion?
There was no hint of animosity towards defending champion Jannik Sinner from the crowd at Rod Laver Arena.Credit: Getty Images
“I was curious to see how it was (given the debate over his pending doping case),” Sinner said after his straight sets 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-5), 6-1 first round win over Chilean Nicolas Jarry.
“You never know what’s happening. I was happy about the crowd.
“I was just looking forward to go on court. This is why I practice for, no? I’m trying to compete in the best possible way.”
If there was unease about whether Sinner should even be walking onto court to defend his Australian Open title while a doping case against him is pending, there was no sense of it on Rod Laver Arena.
There was no hint of discord, no uncomfortable shifting in the seat, just enthusiastic applause as he appeared in Melbourne for his first round match.
In fact, the most unease about Sinner’s doping case was felt by Jarry before the match. To be drawn against Sinner in the first round was as much ironic as it was galling for the Chilean, who served an 11-month ban for testing positive to small amounts of a banned substance he argued were in contaminated vitamins.
The fact that Sinner, in contrast, was only issued a one-month ban and was able to play against him while awaiting a WADA appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport contesting that ban, was difficult for Jarry to swallow.
“It’s a very tough question, (whether he should be) able to be playing or not. It doesn’t depend on me. What I can say is that, it’s tough for me to play against him,” he said.
“Thankfully, I was able to do a very good job since the draw was out and all the emotions that went through, and I was able to calm everything that came up in my head and to stay calm and be very prepared for the match.
“It’s a very, very difficult, delicate topic. What I can say is that I would have liked the same treatment in the things that I went through. I don’t think it was … the same.”
Last year, Sinner twice tested positive to Clostebol, a banned anabolic steroid. The International Tennis Integrity Agency found it was Sinner’s physiotherapist’s fault for inadvertently using a spray, that contained the banned substance, to treat a wound on his own hands before massaging Sinner.
Sinner was found to have “no fault or negligence” by the ITIA. WADA appealed that decision and the one-month ban, meaning his fate now rests with the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Nicolas Jarry departs the arena, applauded by his opponent, world No.1 Jannik Sinner.Credit: AP
“Whatever happens to him, hopefully it’s what’s the fairest decision for all the other cases of the past that’s gone through in tennis and in every sport. So hopefully, it can just be as fair as possible,” Jarry said.
Asked if he felt a player’s ranking influenced the level of suspension they received, given the disparity in the treatment he (presently ranked no.36) received and that meted to Sinner, Jarry was diplomatic.
“You can make that conclusion with what happened recently, but I don’t think that’s the case,” he said.
Sinner, for his part, was sympathetic to Jarry’s plight, but said he didn’t know the details of his case well enough to comment on the disparity of punishment.
“If the protocol has some issues or problem, then it’s not my fault, you know?” Sinner said.
“Of course, I’m very sorry for the players who are passing these kind of things. But I don’t know exactly the details about his case and my case. I know only what happened to me.
“At the end of the day, I was always judged that I was innocent. The amount I had in my body is less than a billionth of a gram, and it was (called) contamination. I don’t know exactly the details what he had.”
The question of whether Sinner should have been there or not, given how other players have been treated, or the level of banned drugs involved is either all very juicy or tremendously tedious depending on your perspective.
Sinner’s athleticism was on display in his straight-sets win.Credit: AP
The tennis fans at Laver Arena clearly felt the debate overblown.
There was only vocal support for both players from the not-quite-full stadium.
Meanwhile, a tennis a match was played, and after two sets, both decided by tiebreakers because neither player dropped serve, Sinner closed out the match with a dominant third set.
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