"Italian had to bear the consequences": Lindsay Davenport left 'shocked' after Jannik Sinner escapes ban despite testing positive twice for banned substance

Former world number one Lindsay Davenport has revealed that she was left ‘shocked’ with how Jannik Sinner’s doping case was treated. The 23-year-old is regarded as one of the best players currently playing in men’s tennis in the singles category, along with Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and Serbia’s Novak Djokovic.

Sinner has been in the news recently, mostly for the wrong reasons. The reigning world number one in men’s tennis narrowly escaped a ban after testing positive for a banned substance in two doping tests. The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), in a detailed statement, announced that they accepted the player’s counsel’s argument where they claimed the banned substance was positive in a minimal quantity in the player’s sample because of receiving a cream from one of the coaching staff members to overcome an injury.

Sinner’s acquittal from the charges was confirmed on Monday as reported by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), which confirmed that they would not appeal the ITIA’s verdict. The ITIA’s first decision received mixed reactions from the tennis community. Some current and former players were unhappy with the verdict as they demanded equal treatment of all players going through similar charges.

Former women’s world number one Davenport became another known voice who expressed her reservations with how the case was dealt. The former American tennis star was recently quoted in a report where she stated that she was ‘shocked’ with authorities' behaviour towards Sinner despite testing positive twice. She was of the opinion that the current world number one had to bear the 'consequences' and also stated that it is proved once again that all players are not treated equally by the authorities.

“I am honestly shocked,” she said. “Like most. It seems that we are only now finding out what is happening behind the scenes. I don’t know how he is allowed to play all year. It’s not fair to other players, it’s obvious that not everyone is treated the same. Especially to those who are ranked lower. Money seems to be decisive here, because there are greater opportunities to pay lawyers and everything that is needed. The Italian had to bear the consequences.”