Unstoppable Jannik Sinner’s biggest opponent is now outside the court
Unstoppable Jannik Sinner’s biggest opponent is now outside the court
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As the World No 1 looks to become the ‘complete player’ after defending his Australian Open title, a hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport stands as his next major hurdle. Jannik Sinner was proud. The 23-year-old had become the first Italian to win three grand slam singles titles, defending his Australian Open crown with a ruthless and dominant straight-sets win over Alexander Zverev. His beaten opponent revealed the difference between the World No 1 and World No 2 at a hard-court grand slam. “He is in a different universe,” Zverev said. For Sinner, a third grand slam title in a row on the surface and a continuation of his winning run put him among all-time legends of the game. Sinner’s achievements over the past 12 months have placed him on a path to greatness.
But Sinner remarked that he took pride in another aspect of his Australian Open defence. For the second grand slam in a row, Sinner was a level above his rivals, exuding calm and composure, while playing with the stress and uncertainty of a potentially career-altering court date approaching on the horizon. In April, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) will hear an appeal from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) after Sinner was cleared of blame following two positive doping tests for an anabolic steroid last March.
![[Sinner lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the French Open semi-finals last season]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/27/13/36/GettyImages-2156529927.jpeg)
If Sinner can appear to be unstoppable on the court, the World No 1’s biggest opponent on the road to further records looks to be the CAS hearing, the date of which was announced on the eve of the Australian Open. It brought similarities to the US Open last August, the first major tournament he played after his positive doping tests came to light and after the International Tennis Integrity Authority announced he had been cleared of blame. For all of the uncertainty around Sinner’s case, the 23-year-old has again found a way to put whatever is going on in the background behind him.
