"What happened to him was unfair": Jasmine Paolini backs Jannik Sinner over doping controversy

Jasmine Paolini commented on Jannik Sinner's doping-ban during the press conference before the start of the Rome Open. The world No. 6 expressed her support for her compatriot, a three-time Grand Slam champion, opining that what happened to the world No. 1 was ‘unfair’.

The 29-year-old Italian is the main local star in the women's draw and hopes to achieve a better result than back in 2024, when she fell in the first round to Egyptian Mayar Sherif (7-6, 2-6, 6-4). However, she had good news in doubles, where she won the title alongside her regular partner Sara Errani.

Paolini hopes on this occasion to achieve a better performance as the leader of Italian women's tennis, being the only top-50 player from her country. The two-time Grand Slam runner-up acknowledged the pressure on local players. "Rome is a tournament where all Italians want to do well but you have to stay calm and not have too many expectations," she stated.

"It's wonderful to play in front of this crowd, which will certainly be even bigger than in other years. Let's say I hope to play more matches than last year when I had a bye in my debut and lost in the second round," Paolini joked.

The world No. 6 was asked about the return of her compatriot Jannik Sinner, who faced a three-month suspension after the positive doping scandal last year. The world No. 1 returns on his home soil, and Paolini expressed her support for her compatriot. "I met Jannik yesterday: it’s nice to see him back on tour," she claimed.

"What happened to him is strange and, in my opinion, unfair. He is an incredible person and he didn’t deserve what happened to him. Contamination is scary because we don’t have control over everything we come into contact with. Wada said it will change the rules in 2027: maybe it should have been done earlier."