"It's an incident that has hurt me": Jannik Sinner's former physiotherapist Giacomo Naldi sheds light on life after infamous doping scandal

Giacomo Naldi, the former physiotherapist of Italy’s Jannik Sinner, has finally opened up about his professional life after the infamous doping scandal. Reigning world number two Sinner tested positive for banned substance clostebol in March last year in two dope tests.

Sinner managed to escape any ban as the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) declared him innocent following a detailed hearing where his counsel claimed that the substance was available in the player’s sample because he came in close contact with his physio, Naldi, who used to spray for the treatment of a cut on his finger.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) appealed against the ITIA’s verdict in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). It demanded a two-year ban for the three-time Grand Slam winner. Still, earlier this year, the case eventually came to a close as WADA announced that it had reached an agreement with Sinner, which will result in the player remaining out of action for three months. His ban ended just a few days before the start of the Rome Masters in May, where Sinner eventually lost to Alcaraz in the final.

Soon after the incident, Sinner parted ways with Naldi and recently hired a new physiotherapist, Alejandro Resnicoff. Naldi, for the first time, appeared in the media after that incident and shed light on his life following what turned out to be a negative incident for him. Naldi stated that he never wanted to comment on what happened and he will still not do that, despite the incident hurting him, both ‘personally and professionally’. "I never wanted to comment on what happened with Sinner's team, and I will continue not to,” said Naldi while talking to Italian media outlet La Gazzetta dello Sport. “Even though it's an incident that has hurt me, both personally and professionally."

After parting ways with Sinner, Naldi stayed out of the circuit for some time and recently returned, having started to work with another Italian player, Francesco Passaro. Naldi was part of the Passaro’s team, which helped him play in the main round of the US Open. The 24-year-old, after winning three qualifying round matches, was eventually knocked out after losing in the first round to fellow Italian Flavio Cobolli in a five-set thriller with a score of 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.

During his visit to New York, Naldi shared that he had the opportunity to meet the other members of the Sinner team and the player himself. Naldi explained that the meeting went well as we were welcoming. Naldi also highlighted that the relationship remains strong as all parties understood the need to ‘move on’ and focus on the human part.

“We [Sinner and Naldi] talked,” said Naldi. “It was cordial, we shared private things. Beyond everything, the human connection remains after a case that involved us, and it was just an unfortunate series of coincidences, and we are aware of that. I saw Cahill, who has always been very kind, and I met Ferrara. I come from basketball, I have always tried to bring team spirit to the Sinner team, and it is one of the things that has been most appreciated. Even though the collaboration has ended, there are no hard feelings. What happened cannot be changed, but we must move on. Life goes on. Even during the proceedings, we [the Sinner team] always had a good relationship . I always behaved correctly, I never sought publicity. These are the first official statements I've made since everything happened. At times, I've been put in the mouth with words taken from other contexts that have sparked social media hatred and controversy. Unlike others, I never said anything about the incident, and I think my honesty was evident and appreciated.”