"Out of court settlement in abuse case and can’t understand how Jannik Sinner would do the same" - Fans slam Alexander Zverev's take on Italian's case

Alexander Zverev recently weighed in with his opinion on Jannik Sinner's controversial three-month ban from tennis. Zverev suggested if Sinner was truly at fault for doping, he should have been given the harsher punishment of a much lengthier suspension. The German though, did also suggest that in a 'no fault' scenario, a punishment isn't necessary at all. However, several tennis fans objected to the former suggestion.

At a pre-tournament press conference at the 2025 Rio Open, Zverev was asked about his thoughts on the three-month ban that Sinner and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) settled on. The ban sparked outrage in the tennis fraternity, with many questioning how the Italian could negotiate his way out of the doping row, especially with a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) hearing scheduled for April, which has now been scrapped.

In response, Alexander Zverev said:

"It’s a weird situation because it’s been obviously a very long process where first he is cleared, then obviously WADA wanted to have a second look at it and stuff like that."

"To me, I think, you know, there’s two options Either you’re at no fault and you should get no suspension at all. Because if you have no fault, then you have no fault. You shouldn’t get punished. But if you do have fault, then I think for taking steroids, three months is not a suspension," he added.

Zverev on Sinner's ban: "if you do have fault, then I think for taking steroids, 3 months is not a suspension..." byu/minivatreni intennis

Tennis fans on Reddit were mostly critical of Zverev's take, especially because of the German's own past domestic violence controversy, which ended in a settlement between him and his former partner Brenda Patea, who also happens to be the mother of his daughter Mayla. One opined that Jannik Sinner shouldn't have consoled the ATP No. 2 in the immediate aftermath of their 2025 Australian Open final.

"Sinner should have just let him cry on stage at AO '25," a fan wrote.

"I haven't commented on a single one of these points because idk the discourse is just too tiring to me but DVerev??? Truly the last person who needs to be talking deserved suspension time," commented another.

"100% agreed, he shouldn’t be making any comments, don’t think he has a leg to stand on," another chimed in.

Here are some more reactions from fans to Zverev's thoughts on Sinner's ban:

"This doesn’t make it any better. He took an out of court settlement while still claiming full innocence in his abuse case to avoid court and can’t understand how Sinner would do the same in his doping case? You make deals to avoid risk even if you think your case is solid. That’s what he did and what Sinner did, him not getting that is quite embarrassing," wrote one fan.

"How ironic that Zverev of all people doesn't seem to understand what "out of court settlement" means," another added.

"If you do have fault, then I think for domestic violence, an out-of-court settlement is not a punishment," yet another fan weighed in.

Zverev's season is set to continue at the 2025 Rio Open. Meanwhile, Sinner's ban will see him sit out several high-profile events.

Alexander Zverev's 2025 season continues at Rio Open; Jannik Sinner to miss several ATP Masters 1000 events

Alexander Zverev (left) and Jannik Sinner (right) during the trophy presentation ceremony after the 2025 Australian Open men's singles final (Source: Getty)

Alexander Zverev is slated to begin his 2025 Rio Open campaign on Tuesday, February 18, against Yunchaokete Bu. The German's last on-court outing came at the Argentina Open, where he was surprisingly ousted in the quarterfinals by eventual runner-up Francisco Cerundolo, despite having established a one-set lead.

Jannik Sinner is expected to return to action at the 2025 Italian Open, an ATP Masters 1000 event. However, his ban means that he will not be allowed to feature in the 'Sunshine Double', which refers to the back-to-back Masters 1000 tournaments at Indian Wells and Miami. Sinner will also miss the Monte-Carlo Masters and the Madrid Open.

The Italian though, will not have to sit out a Grand Slam, as the Italian Open is scheduled to take place ahead of the 2025 French Open.