"WTF is wrong with Jannik Sinner" - Fans accuse Italian of being 'tone deaf' after admission about players not reaching out during doping ban

Jannik Sinner recently talked about the majority of his ATP Tour colleagues not reaching out to him during his three-month ban from tennis, which has now ended. However, the World No. 1's admission didn't go down well with many fans.

At a pre-tournament press conference ahead of the 2025 Italian Open, where he is set to return to action, Sinner was asked if he had been in recent contact with other players on the ATP Tour. In his response, the three-time Major champion stated that he had only been in touch with Jack Draper and Lorenzo Sonego.

"I haven't spoken to almost anyone. I've spoken to Draper, we're great friends and he came to train with me. Then with Sonego. At the beginning of the suspension I received some surprising messages from certain players, while from others from whom I perhaps expected something, nothing arrived," he said.

Jannik Sinner further added:

"But in the end it's normal, everyone wants to win, there was no video call with any player. But everything will be fine. I don't want to name names regardless."

Many tennis fans on X (formerly Twitter) opined that Jannik Sinner is failing to understand that most players did not take kindly to his case resolution agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). It was this agreement that led to his three-month suspension, but there was a general feeling among some other players that it was a soft punishment for the Italian, who twice tested positive last year for the banned substance Clostebol.

"Grok, define tone deaf. 🤦‍♀️Wtf is wrong with him. Why is he surprised about anything..unreal. Players are not dumb or illiterate or jealous or any other nonsense. They see exactly what happened and are pissed off and rightfully so," a fan wrote.

"It seems that there hasn't been overwhelming support for him amongst his peers. It's a weird situation. I love his game, but he seems tone deaf about the optics," commented another.

"Fellow is consistently projecting victim image on himself. He received very soft, safe suspension for clear mistake on part of team and is cribbing about players not calling him. Why would they call. To say he was right?????," one questioned.

"I remember Novak saying he and Federer and Nadal were never friends while they were playing because they were rivals. I guess this is the same case with Sinner," another fan chimed in.

"What do you want??? Don’t blame any one….," urged one.

"Everyone wants to win, like you, but without doping. And people call their friends. It seems you don't have many on the circuit. Ask yourself why," weighed in yet another fan.

Sinner is slated to begin his 2025 Italian Open campaign against either Mariano Navone or Federico Cina.

Jannik Sinner to play first match upon return in Italian Open 2R; could potentially face Carlos Alcaraz in final

Jannik Sinner during a practice session at the Foro Italico in Rome ahead of the 2025 Italian Open (Source: Getty)

As the top seed in the men's singles main draw for the 2025 Italian Open, Jannik Sinner has received a first-round bye and will get his campaign in Rome started in the second round. Here, the home favorite will lock horns with the winner of the first-round match between Mariano Navone and Federico Cina.

If Sinner does make a deep run at the ATP Masters 1000 clay-court event, he is likely to face some formidable names who are currently in great form themselves. For instance, he may run into Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the third round. The resurgent Spaniard recently reached the semifinals of the Monte-Carlo Masters and the quarterfinals of the Barcelona Open.

In the fourth round, Sinner could meet Francisco Cerundolo, who was in red-hot form at the Madrid Open and finished in the semifinals in the Spanish capital. If the Italian progresses to the quarterfinals, he could have a showdown with newly-crowned Madrid champion Casper Ruud.

There is also the tantalizing prospect of a Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz final at the 2025 Italian Open. Alcaraz, the No. 3 seed at the tournament, is in the opposite half of the draw and has already tasted success in the 2025 European claycourt swing by clinching the Monte-Carlo Masters title. The Spaniard also finished as the runner-up in Barcelona.