Jannik Sinner adds another competition to calendar before French Open on doping return

World number one Jannik Sinner has included another tournament in his calendar to prepare for the Roland Garros. The 23-year-old, who is regarded as one of the best players in men’s tennis in the singles category, is currently going through a three-month ban after two failed dope tests last year.

Sinner tested positive for the banned substance clostebol in two doping tests in March last year but 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 one member of the coaching staff had received a cream for the treatment of an injury.

WADA appealed against the ITIA’s verdict in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and demanded a two-year ban for the three-time Grand Slam winner. However, the issue finally came to a conclusion on Saturday last week as WADA announced that they had reached an agreement with Sinner, which will result in the player remaining out of action for three months.

Sinner’s current ban is set to end some days before the start of the Rome Masters which would be a perfect opportunity for him to prepare for the second Grand Slam of the year. The tournament will be organised from May 07-18 where some top player of the world will participate to not only clinch the title but to adjust themselves ahead of the Roland Garros. However, as per the latest report by NBC Sports, the reigning world number one in men’s tennis is set to feature in the Hamburg Open as well. The ATP 500 event will be oragnised from May 18 to 24 in Germany. It will end just a day before the start of the French Open 2025. Sinner had an impressive outing at the French Open last year where he was knocked out after losing in the semifinal to Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz in a five-set thriller with a score of 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.