Sinner returns: I barely talked to the players during the lockdown

Everything seems to be just right.

After successfully defending his men's singles title at the Australian Open earlier this year with back-to-back victories over the likes of Rune, De Minaur, Shelton and Zverev, Italian Sinner was shortly after being banned from three months for posing positive for doping last year.

The final ban period runs from February 9, 2025 to May 4, 2025. Although Sinner has always insisted that he is innocent, the confirmation of the ban also represents his acceptance of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) agreement.

During Sinner's ban, there were no Grand Slam tournaments, and his hometown tournament, the Rome Masters, coincided with the end of the ban period, and Sinner actually began training in earnest last month.

Born in 2001, he became the first post-zero player to reach the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam men's singles in 2020 (French Open). At the Sofia Open that same year, Sinner won his first career singles title on tour.

The 2021 season was a year of continuous climbing, as he won his second ATP singles title at the Great Ocean Road Open at the beginning of the year, and eliminated Khachanov and Agut at the Miami Masters, becoming the youngest player to reach the men's singles final of the Masters since Nadal in Madrid in 2005 (ultimately losing to Hurkacz in two sets in the final).

Sinner reached the top 10 in the world rankings for the first time that year and played as a substitute in the ATP Finals, sweeping Hurkacz 6-2 6-2 in his group stage debut, a victory that was also the first win of a post-zero player at the ATP Finals.

In the following seasons, with the optimization and adjustment of Sinner's team and the continuous soaring of his personal competitive form, he won the first Masters championship, the first Grand Slam championship, the first time he became the world No. 1, and the first time he became the year-end No. 1 ...... All sorts of honors followed.

However, the doping scandal has undoubtedly left an indelible mark on Sinner's career, and many familiar players have questioned the fairness of the process.

Deyo thinks that it is not fair enough, and there is favoritism; Zverev said that if it weren't for Sinner's problem, he shouldn't be banned, and if so, then three months is too short. Kyrgios, by contrast, was much sharper, and he thought it was a sad day for tennis – as Sinner didn't lose the title and the prize money.

At the same time, Sinner also said in a recent interview with the media that he barely spoke to anyone during the ban and received surprising news from some players.

The Rome Masters is Sinner's first tournament on his comeback, as he has a first-round bye as the tournament's top seed, followed by Navol in the second round.(Source: Tennis House Author: Barbie)