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Casper Ruud recently spoke up about Jannik Sinner's imminent return to competitive action at the 2025 Italian Open. The Norwegian has been one of the few players to have openly sided with the Italian over the latter's now-concluded three-month ban, and he once again voiced a supportive message for his ATP Tour colleague and rival.
In February this year, it was confirmed that Sinner had reached a case resolution settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and agreed to serve a three-month suspension from tennis. The ban stemmed from the Italian twice testing positive last year for the banned, performance-enhancing anabolic steroid clostebol.
While WADA acknowledged that Jannik Sinner didn't intentionally expose himself to the substance, it held the World No. 1 accountable for the actions of his team members, which led to the Clostebol contamination in the first place. Soon after the suspension was announced, Ruud told noted tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg:
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"I feel sorry for Jannik. He's, in my opinion, not done anything intentionally. And, you know, it is not the first time it has happened—but it doesn't happen often—settlements in a doping sentence, which was probably surprising for a few people."
Recently, in an interview with Sky Sports Tennis ahead of his 2025 Italian Open campaign, Ruud looked forward to seeing Sinner back in action.
"I expect him to be welcomed with a lot of fans and great cheering. I look forward to seeing when he comes back on the court on Saturday. I haven't seen him personally yet but I look forward to seeing him and maybe have a little talk with him. It's great to see him back. I've been open about what I thought about the ban and these things before, so, I've always tried to stay as supportive as I can," Ruud said.
The Norwegian, who recently won his maiden Masters 1000 title at the Madrid Open, also suggested that the Italian is likely to come out all guns blazing in Rome.
"I realize that it's been a tough moment for him, but I'm happy to see him back, and, you know, he hasn't been dealing with injury. So, I hope he can play well. There is a high chance he will come out playing really well from the beginning. I hope he will get a good tournament here in Rome," Ruud added.
Sinner himself, though, has downplayed the expectations surrounding his comeback at the Italian Open.
"Italian Open 2025 is a very low-expectation tournament" - Jannik Sinner
The 2025 Australian Open final in January was the last time Jannik Sinner featured in competitive action before his three-month suspension came into effect. Due to his absence from the ATP Tour since then, the World No. 1 recently claimed that he does not have high expectations in terms of results from his Italian Open campaign.
"It’s a very low expectation tournament in general. Results-wise, I don’t know. For me, what’s missing is the complete feedback of where my level is. That’s going to come slowly with time playing. After the first-round match I’m going to have a good picture of myself, where I am at," Sinner said during a pre-tournament press conference.
Jannik Sinner is the top seed in the men's singles main draw in Rome and has received a first-round bye. Subsequently, he is set to face either Mariano Navone or Federico Cina in the second round of the ATP Masters 1000 event.
