With doping questions following him, Jannik Sinner wins second major title

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NEW YORK -- Jannik Sinner threw his arms above his head, closed his eyes and let out a deep breath.

It was only when he let his arms drop again to his side that he showed the faintest hint of a smile.

While the rest of his team and his player box jumped to their feet, his coach Darren Cahill remained in his seat, bent over with his head in his hands. He appeared to be wiping away tears from his face.

The 23-year-old Italian had just won the US Open behind a staggering 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 victory over American Taylor Fritz. After months of uncertainty and doubt, the relief he felt was evident with every step he took towards the net to shake hands and hug Fritz, and as he slowly made his way to his box to embrace all those that had been on the journey with him.

It was Sinner's second major title of the year -- and of his career -- and he becomes the first Italian man to win in New York and just the third man in the Open Era to earn his first two Slam titles in the same season. He further extended his lead as the world No. 1.

But in those moments after the match, Sinner wasn't necessarily thinking about the big picture or what this meant for his long-term legacy in the sport. Instead, it was a weight off of his shoulders after a challenging few months of waiting to know his fate on the tennis court after testing positive for a banned substance during two separate tests in March.

"This title for me means so much, because the last period of my career was really not easy," Sinner told the crowd shortly after.

Jannik Sinner defeated Taylor Fritz for the US Open title on Sunday. Allen Kee / ESPN Images

Sinner opened the 2024 season with his first major title at the Australian Open, cementing his spot as one of the best young stars in the sport -- and as an heir apparent, alongside Carlos Alcaraz -- that could help replace Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic once they eventually joined Roger Federer in retirement.

And he continued to demonstrate his hard-court prowess with the title in Miami in March. He reached the semifinals at the French Open and took over the world No. 1 ranking at the event's conclusion. He made the quarterfinals at Wimbledon in July.

Tonsillitis forced him to withdraw from the Olympics, but he was back in time for the hard-court summer season. He reached the quarterfinals at the Canadian Open before a dominant run at the Cincinnati Open, culminating with the title, at the final lead-in event before the US Open.

Sinner seemed to be the obvious favorite to win in New York and claim the second major title of his career and of the year.

Sinner becomes one of only four men to win both the Australian Open and the US Open in the same year since 1988, when the Australian Open transitioned from grass to hard court. Allen Kee / ESPN Images

But the day after hoisting the trophy in Ohio, it was revealed that the 23-year-old had tested positive for a banned substance on two separate occasions in March. In a statement, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) announced Sinner had tested positive for low levels of clostebol, a banned anabolic steroid. He was provisionally suspended at the time but had been able to compete during the appeal process.

During a hearing in August, the ITIA said an independent panel "determined a finding of No Fault or Negligence applied in the case," and blamed the contamination on Sinner's then-physiotherapist Giacomo Naldi. Sinner's then-fitness coach Umberto Ferrara had purchased an over-the-counter spray, which contained the substance, and Naldi had used it on himself to treat a small wound before giving Sinner a massage. Both Naldi and Ferrara have since been fired by Sinner.

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While he was cleared to play at the US Open, and everywhere else, Sinner arrived to New York under a cloud of scrutiny. Several of his peers were critical of the ruling and questioned the treatment he had received, speculating there was a double standard for the top-ranked player in the world. Nick Kyrgios called it "ridiculous" on X and added "whether it was accidental or planned, you get tested twice with a banned [steroid] substance ... you should be gone for 2 years."

Denis Shapovalov posted, "Different rules for different players."

During Sinner's pre-tournament media availability, three days after the news had been made public, he was subjected to a slew of questions from reporters -- despite the moderator's attempts to limit such inquiries -- about the findings and the ruling. Sinner reiterated his innocence and said that while his preparation for the tournament hadn't been "perfect" because of "certain circumstances," he was still ready to play.

"Of course it's not ideal before a Grand Slam," Sinner said. "But, you know, in my mind I know that I haven't done anything wrong. I had to play already months with this in my head, but, you know, just remembering myself that I haven't done really anything wrong. I always respect these rules, and I always will respect these rules of anti-doping.

"Just obviously a relief for myself having this result. And, yeah, so it's just good to be back here. It's an amazing city, amazing place to play tennis. I will just try to enjoy as much as I can and hopefully having a good tournament."

In an interview with ESPN after the final on Sunday, Cahill said the team tried to keep Sinner's spirits up and their full attention on tennis, and not any possible suspension. He said it had been difficult at times.

"The last three or four weeks, the last four months ... [we've just tried] to keep his focus on what we're trying to achieve, to make sure I continually tell him he's done nothing wrong," Cahill said. "So whatever happens, hold your head up high because you've done absolutely nothing wrong. Let's just go about our tennis in a professional way and see what we can do in this period. And once we get through it, then we'll be able to go from there. And we got through it."

During the opening set of his first-round match on the second day of the tournament, it seemed as if the stress might have gotten to Sinner. Facing Mackenzie McDonald, another American on Ashe, Sinner struggled at the start and lost, 6-2. But there would be no early exit. He fought back and rediscovered his level for a four-set victory. He later said he just tried to "stay there mentally."

From there, he dropped just one set -- to 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinals -- through the rest of the tournament. During the semifinals, he withheld a tough early battle with friend Jack Draper. But as Draper struggled with nerves, anxiety and even vomited multiple times on the court, Sinner remained composed. After two tight sets to start the match, he closed it out 6-2 in the third.

Sinner has a 12-0 record in majors against Americans, and defeated four at the US Open: Mackenzie McDonald, Alex Michelsen, Tommy Paul and Taylor Fritz. Allen Kee / ESPN Images

On Sunday against Fritz, who was playing the best tournament of his career and had a raucous pro-American crowd behind him with occasional "U-S-A" chants, Sinner looked largely unfazed. Fritz jumped out to a 3-2 lead in the opening set but Sinner took control.

Fritz finally found another level with his back against the wall in the third set -- much to the delight of the crowd -- and was serving at 5-4 to force a fourth set. But Sinner broke him and won the match's final four games for the straight-set victory.

"[I] put myself in a good position to win the third, but he played a good game when I went to serve it out," Fritz said later. "But that's just kind of how it goes, when you're playing, you know, he's the best player in the world right now."

For much of the summer, Sinner wasn't sure what would happen to him, or if he would even be allowed to play at the US Open. Now, six months to the day from his first positive test, Sinner leaves New York as the US Open champion.

"This means so much," Sinner said to ESPN. "[My team and I] all know how much we went through. We worked for it. We tried to accept our difficulties and this is truly, truly an amazing achievement for me and my team."

With doping questions following him, Jannik Sinner wins second major title

With doping questions following him, Jannik Sinner wins second major title

With doping questions following him, Jannik Sinner wins second major title

With doping questions following him, Jannik Sinner wins second major title

With doping questions following him, Jannik Sinner wins second major title