March 2024. Indian Wells. The iconic tournament, as always, welcomed a flood of talent ready to compete for one of the first Masters 1000 titles of the year. Within the Italian team, Umberto Ferrara, Jannik Sinner’s physical trainer, had in his possession a bottle of Trofodermin, a spray containing clostebol, a steroid classified as a banned substance by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

Trofodermin, a perfect remedy for skin wounds, was a godsend for Giacomo Naldi, Sinner’s physiotherapist, who was suffering from a hand injury. Ferrara applied the lotion to him. From there, according to the defense, Naldi gave Sinner a massage without wearing gloves, causing the product, still present on the specialist's hands, to come into contact with Jannik’s skin. This, they claim, is how the contamination occurred.

"Wait a minute, things don't add up," some followers thought. Under this pretext, many users delved into an investigation about Naldi's finger. Tennis specialist reporter Ben Rothenberg lays out in a thread on his X account how the pieces of this puzzle don’t quite fit together. The dates of the defense's statement during the hearing, claiming that Naldi's cut occurred on March 3rd, contradict what was seen at the stadium: Naldi never wore a band-aid, except on March 10th, the day Sinner underwent the anti-doping test that later came back positive.

During Indian Wells, Sinner underwent a doping test that came back positive, although he was not yet aware of the result. Despite this, Sinner advanced to the semifinals, where he was defeated by his arch-rival, Carlos Alcaraz. Subsequently, he won the Miami tournament without knowing that he was still testing positive. After his victory, a second test also returned a positive result, which was communicated to him in April.

However, the most surprising events followed. The 23-year-old withdrew from the Madrid tournament in the quarterfinals, citing hip issues. Later, and much to his dismay, he also withdrew from the prestigious Rome tournament and even cast doubt on his participation in Roland Garros, staying out of competition for 27 days. During this time, unbeknownst to anyone, Sinner and his legal team worked to prevent the automatic suspension that typically follows a positive doping result.

At the hearing, they managed to demonstrate that the detected amount was extremely low (a billionth of a gram)—implying that it would have had little to no effect on his performance—, and that it was ingested “accidentally,” allowing the case to be handled more leniently. Other similar cases, such as that of former WTA No. 1 Simona Halep, saw different outcomes. The Romanian was banned until her guilt was confirmed, given the legitimate presence of the substance Roxadustat in her system. However, in Sinner’s case, the decision was notably different.

This leads us to 15 August, when another hearing was held before a tribunal of three experts who accepted the defense’s version, resulting in no sanctions for the San Candido native. The reasons? A minuscule amount and a series of coincidences involving his physiotherapist and the spray that led to the conclusion that the player “knew nothing and was not at fault,” as his coach, Darren Cahill, stated.

Further investigation reveals a powerful testimony: Giacomo Naldi, the ‘Team Sinner’ physiotherapist, had previously been involved in a similar incident during his time with the basketball team, Olimpia Milano, involving the exact same banned substance. Coincidence or confusion?

Unsurprisingly, the tennis world has erupted following the positive result of the Italian star, with criticism directed at the ruling. The imposed sanction, which only involves stripping Sinner of his points and prize money from the Indian Wells semifinals, has been heavily criticized by fans, professionals, and journalists.

Questions have been pouring in, as if a deluge had descended upon Sinner’s camp. “Different rules for different players,” wrote the promising Canadian-Israeli player Denis Shapovalov on his X account, who reached the world’s top 10 in 2020 at just 21 years old. Other voices have also been harsh, condemning the poor judgment of the sanctioning body for what they called the “ridiculous” tribunal ruling, as opined by the always controversial Nick Kyrgios.

Roberto Carballés Baena also alluded to the alleged “injustice” compared to other players, such as the Swede Mikael Ymer, who faced the full weight of the law for missing “three no-shows” at doping tests in 2021. In fact, one of them was caused by a change of hotel during a Challenger tournament that his agent failed to report. The result? An 18-month suspension. The Frenchman Lucas Pouille also weighed in, being succinct and direct: “Maybe they should stop taking us for fools, don’t you think?” The Portuguese player Gastão Elias didn’t mince words and delivered a painful jab at the authorities: “Tennis is officially a joke.”

However, as noted by the expert José Morón from the daily Punto de Break, in March of this year, another Italian tennis player, Marco Bortolotti, also tested positive for the same substance and was quickly absolved of any negligence. Like Jannik Sinner, Bortolotti argued that his case was an accident. “The substance in question has appeared in several cases involving Italian tennis players, suggesting that its use is relatively common. This is partly due to the fact that the spray containing it is sold in pharmacies without a prescription,” Morón commented on his official profile. 

Nevertheless, the director of the renowned Spanish media outlet reveals a story that may have gone unnoticed at the time: that of Kamil Majchrzak. The Polish player was initially handed a four-year suspension for doping after testing positive for a minimal amount of a substance, which he claimed came from an isotonic drink "that was not properly labeled." Although doctors confirmed that the amount was insignificant, his suspension was only reduced to one year, and he was condemned for "accidental doping." Majchrzak now criticizes the apparent preferential treatment Jannik Sinner received, as Sinner was allowed to continue playing during the process and was ultimately absolved without sanction, causing frustration for Majchrzak.

This has led to speculation that Sinner’s defense was likely built on this similar precedent, helping to construct a solid case to prove that his positive test was accidental. Regardless, the controversy is in full swing, with social media ablaze—some humorously through memes, others more fiercely calling for the harshest penalty for the world No. 1—. The only certainty is that the ATP has already made its stance clear, and it doesn’t seem like there’s any turning back. Their recent statement, in which they expressed their “relief” that “no fault or negligence was found on the part of Jannik Sinner,” seems to have slammed the door shut on those trying to create distractions.