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Carlos Alcaraz, Aryna Sabalenka, and Jasmine Paolini recently expressed their views on evolving anti-doping regulations and how it has affected their outlook towards competing. Sabalenka and Paolini, in particular, emphasized a sense of apprehension over the ever-changing guidelines, especially in the light of Jannik Sinner, Iga Swiatek, and Max Purcell's doping cases.
Sinner and Swiatek were both subject to controversy last year as they tested positive for banned substances clostebol and trimetazidine, respectively. While the Italian was first exonerated by the International Tennis Integrity Association (ITIA), the decision was appealed by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Eventually, he accepted a three-month suspension from WADA earlier this year, in exchange for the appeal being withdrawn. The Pole, on her part, was provisionally banned for a month after the 2024 US Open, and her acquittal from the ITIA wasn't challenged by WADA.
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Max Purcell endured the worst fate of the three as far as his sentence for failing to adhere to ITIA's Anti-Doping Programme was concerned. The Aussie copped an 18-month suspension for receiving multiple IV infusions of vitamins over the permissible limit of 100mL in December 2023. The 27-year-old's case differed from Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek, as his major offence, as cited in ITIA's statement, was the "use of a Prohibited Method" and not "administering a Prohibited Substance".
During their respective pre-tournament press conferences ahead of the French Open on Friday (May 23), Aryna Sabalenka and Jasmine Paolini expressed their concern with the anti-doping regulations amidst the growing number of doping cases. The Belarusian gave Purcell the benefit of the doubt while speaking positively of her team's efforts to keep her clean.
"I’m really glad I have a good team around me. I can trust them," Sabalenka told the media in Paris. "On that case, I don’t know what to say. I don’t know what was going on there. I never comment on the doping cases because you never know. Some things can happen by accident."
The Italian, meanwhile, claimed that she was scared at the prospect of unjustly picking up a ban.
"I think I was paying attention to it also a lot before, but now you feel like you were more vulnerable," Paolini said. "Because, you know, after those cases, you see that, I don't know, it's more real somehow, you know. I don't know what to say, but it's scary a little bit."
Carlos Alcaraz, unlike Aryna Sabalenka, didn't have a preconceived opinion on Max Purcell's ban, going by his comments to the French media on Friday. A media person asked the World No. 2 whether intravenous infusions in pro tennis posed a problem for fair competition on the ATP and WTA Tours. The Spaniard was unable to answer the question, as he mentioned that he was not well-versed in the topic.
"Honestly, what you told me right now, it sounds to me like you were talking Chinese," Carlos Alcaraz told the media on Friday. "I have no idea what you were talking about, so I don't know if it's good or not. Honestly, I haven't heard that thing in my life so I can't answer, sorry."
When Carlos Alcaraz gave his take on Jannik Sinner's doping case having been reopened by WADA: "I think for tennis is not really good"
Last September, Carlos Alcaraz gave his thoughts on ITIA's "no fault nor negligence" decision on Jannik Sinner's doping case being challenged by WADA. He stated:
"Well, yeah, as you said, it's really sensitive things to Jannik and tennis in general... I think for tennis is not really good, not really good sign for tennis in general. It seems like something happen," Carlos Alcaraz told the media at China Open 2024.
Despite Alcaraz's previous comments on Sinner, the two shared great camaraderie during the trophy ceremony at the Italian Open final a week ago. The 21-year-old downed his older opponent 7-6(5), 6-1 to establish himself as the No. 1 favorite for the 2025 French Open.
