"Stop with the false accusations" - Jannik Sinner's fans defend Italian against harsh criticism for 'shameful' incident with fan

Jannik Sinner recently faced backlash for a controversial incident with a fan amid his campaign at the 2025 Italian Open. However, the World No. 1's fans were quick to leap to his defense and point out that the altercation did not play out as it appeared.

Sinner delivered a strong run at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome, his first tournament back after a three-month doping suspension. Although the Italian claimed impressive wins over the likes of Casper Ruud and Tommy Paul, he suffered a 7-6(5), 6-1 loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the blockbuster final.

Following his defeat, a clip circulated on social media that showed Jannik Sinner taking a selfie with a fan and seemingly pushing him out of the way afterwards. The incident drew harsh criticism for the Italian's "entitled" attitude. However, upon closer viewing, it became clear that the fan was pushed aside by Sinner's bodyguard and not the 23-year-old himself.

"Shocking to see a drunk Jannik Sinner push away a middle-aged, hard-working man who had waited for hours to take a picture with him today. There should be no place in sports for behavior like this from entitled athletes," the fan posted.

But that didn't stop fans from lambasting the Italian for his "shameful" behavior. One of them also argued that Novak Djokovic would've received relentless "hatred" on social media if he was in Jannik Sinner's place.

"Shameful behaviour from the ginger," one fan commented.

"If Djokovic did this, imagine the viral outrage and non stop media hatred. Sinner is obviously a phony puppet," another fan chimed in.

Sinner's supporters refuted the "false accusation" and pointed out that it was clearly the World No. 1's bodyguard who had stepped in to push the fan away.

"Please stop with the false accusations. Jannik Sinner has always been respectful and kind to everyone. He always stops for fans, for journalists, for people who approach him—he has never been rude or aggressive. It’s unfair to judge him based on something that didn’t happen," one fan commented.

"Are you feeling alright, or do you need an eye doctor to realize it's the bodyguard's hand? You lot never fail to be snakes when it comes to spouting nonsense!" a fan posted.

"Imagine being so stupid to not understand that it's the hand of the bodyguard," another fan argued.

"That’s literally security’s hand. Y’all have no shame lying like this," a fan wrote.

On the tennis front, Jannik Sinner pulled out of the Hamburg Open amid his campaign in Rome. The Italian will be back in action at the French Open, which kicks off on May 25.

Jannik Sinner reveals plans to unwind before gearing up for French Open

Jannik Sinner - Source: Getty

Speaking to the press after his defeat in the Italian Open final, Jannik Sinner expressed satisfaction with his deep run at the ATP Masters 1000 event. The World No. 1 also said that he would use his week off to unwind before getting ready for the French Open.

"Yeah, it's good. I played the maximum of matches here in Rome, which is very good. Now I have one week off, which is good for me. A couple of days to switch off mentally, and then being ready for an even more important tournament. So hopefully I'm ready. Yeah, let's see," Jannik Sinner said.

Carlos Alcaraz, who will be looking to defend his title at the claycourt Major, said that the World No. 1 would be a very "dangerous" threat at Roland Garros. The Spaniard also disclosed that he had gained a lot of respect for Sinner after witnessing the "insane" level he displayed on his comeback.

"The level he has played in this tournament is insane after three months without playing, without any tournament. I mean, what he has done, it's amazing. I mean, it's something that I have to have respect on that," Alcaraz said in his press conference. "He's going to be a really dangerous player in Paris. We're going to be both in both part of the draw, so let's see."

Having reclaimed the World No. 2 ranking from Alexander Zverev with his Italian Open triumph, Alcaraz has also expressed relief about avoiding top seed Jannik Sinner until the French Open final.