Tennis legend claims Jannik Sinner will return with vengence after doping ban

The three-time Grand Slam winner's last professional match was on 26 January when he beat Alexander Zverev in straight sets in the Australian Open final to successfully defend his Melbourne crown.

He was due to play at the Qatar Open a few weeks later, but he was then hit with a three-month suspension following his positive tests for the banned substance clostebol in March 2024.

The world No. 1's suspension started on 9 February and will come to an end on 4 May with his first tournament the Italian Open.

Sinner was in danger of losing top spot in the ATP Rankings to Zverev or Carlos Alcaraz during his ban, but the duo have failed in their pursuit and the Italian will still be No 1 when he makes his comeback.

Panatta is of the opinion that the 23-year-old â- who will also miss the upcoming Monte Carlo Masters and the Madrid Open â- used his time away to improve.

"Sinner is ready for Rome, a break can sometimes do good," the 1976 Roland Garros winner told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"I am convinced that Jannik has used this period to improve his game on clay and has not lost his physical shape, they tell me that he has trained a lot and fortunately he has also maintained the top of the ranking.

"I repeat, I am very optimistic, three months is not a very long time. More would have been a problem, he has used this period to train in a certain way, improving his game and physique."

Sinner was initially cleared of any wrongdoing by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) as they found he bore "no fault or negligence" for his failed tests and was allowed to continue playing, but the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) then appealed the decision.

After initially asking for a ban of 12 to 24 months, they then reached an agreement with Sinner's legal representatives.

"He has nothing to do with the sanction, he did the right thing to accept the plea bargain because with WADA you never know where you're going to end up," Panatta said.

"He's a very intelligent and mature guy, an example for all sports for his behaviour. Maybe he's even too perfect."

Italian fans, though, will no doubt line up to see Sinner in action at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome.

He is yet to click at the tournament as he missed the event last year due to injury while his best performance was a run to the quarterfinal in 2022.

Asked about Sinner's chances of winning the Italian Open and/or French Open, Panatta replied: "Sooner or later he'll win them, if not this year it will be next year. He's mature enough to win everything."

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