Jannik Sinner will face a long ban from tennis unlike Iga Swiatek if WADA wins appeal, believes ITIA CEO

The ITIA CEO Karen Moorhouse recently commented on Jannik Sinner’s doping case. If the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) appeal against Sinner's reduced punishment is upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the World No. 1 may be in for a lengthy suspension according to the ITIA boss.

Moorhouse discussed how Sinner’s case is more complicated and serious than that of Swiatek's. She said (via Tennis365):

“In relation to Swiatek, the contaminated product was a medication. So it was not unreasonable for a player to assume that a regulated medication would contain what it says on the ingredients. The complication with the Sinner case is the positive test was not a result of a contaminated product. And so because it is not a contaminated product, the range for a sanction is one year to two years.”

In Swiatek’s case, the player said that she had accidentally consumed the drug in the form of medication for her sleeping issues. She served a month's suspension on that basis.

On the other hand, in Sinner's case, the World No. 1 said his physiotherapist had applied a cream containing a prohibited substance on himself and then massaged the Italian without gloves. The prohibited substance, Clostebol, was transferred and detected in Sinner's blood samples taken in March 2024. The ITIA eventually ruled that Sinner bore ‘no significant fault or negligence’.

However, WADA has appealed against the judgment and wants Sinner to face stricter charges for doping. This appeal has brought back the debate on intent, and whether considering it while determining an athlete’s punishment upholds true justice or not.

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Jannik Sinner opens up about his doping case

Jannik Sinner - Source: Getty

After beating Taylor Fritz in the ATP Finals in November, the World No. 1 discussed the doping row. In the post-match interview, he said (via Sportstar):

“I’ve kept on thinking about where we went wrong and what we could have done better, I had days where I wasn’t feeling great; nights when I didn’t sleep well. But when I put my hat on, I don’t think about what’s going on beyond the court.”

The Italian had an amazing 2024 season despite the doping controversy. He won 2 Grand Slams (the Australian Open and the US Open), achieved the World No. 1 ranking, and won a Davis Cup for his country.

The final ruling from the CAS on Sinner's doping charges is expected to arrive early this year. If WADA's appeal is upheld, the defending Australian Open champion might be out of action for over a year or two.