Until Monday evening, it seemed as if Jannik Sinner was all set to enter an elite club of sorts featuring the ‘Big 3’, even before his big rival and Spanish young prodigy Carlos Alcaraz. The Italian star’s win percentage this season so far is quite impressive and he might end up with a 90+%, something which only Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic have achieved in the last 34 years. However, with the latest news coming in of Sinner allegedly doping earlier this year, the controversy could affect both his reputation and momentum heading into the last quarter of the season.
Having added the Cincinnati Open title to his kitty on Monday, Sinner has now attained a winning percentage of 90.6% in the 2024 season. Currently, Sinner has the best winning ratio on the tour, with him losing only 5 and winning 48 of the total 53 matches he played.
Alcaraz, on the other hand, has won a total of 3 titles this year, including 2 major titles. Alcaraz’s winning percentage is 82.6% with him playing 46 matches, winning 38 and losing 8 of them.
The Open Era has seen some legends who left a solid legacy in the sport. However, this feat of ending the season on a percentage above 90, after the start of the ATP Masters 1000 format, is something which even the likes of Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras could not achieve.
Since 1990, the first player to achieve this feat was none other than Federer. The Swiss legend had 3 consecutive seasons with a 90+ winning percentage. In 2004, he first achieved the feat when his season finished with a winning percentage of 92.5%. Continuing his form in the next 2 seasons as well, he finished at 95.3% in 2005 and 94.8% in 2006.
On the other hand, Nadal ended his 2013 season with a 91.5% while Novak did it twice, in 2011 and 2015 with 92.1% and 93.2% respectively.
Sinner has always looked up to all the three superstars. But by the end of the year, he could reach their status at the age of 23 by also remaining the World No.1. The question remains – Does Sinner have it in him to bounce back and win both matches as well as hearts to restore normalcy after the controversy?
Doping Controversy Could Affect Sinner For Rest of the 2024 Season
Sinner was largely a fan favorite until his Cincinnati Open win. The following day though, it was revealed that the Italian star tested positive allegedly for doping twice earlier in the 2024 season. However, Sinner has insisted that he had no idea of the substances he took, which were to cure some pains and injuries, but they are supposedly not permitted as per ATP rules.
As a result, the reigning Australian Open champion has not been suspended but stripped off 1000 points as well as his entire prize money which he won at Indian Wells, the tournament where he supposedly was tested.
People are entitled to feel however they want about Jannik Sinner being cleared for those two positive tests.
But what should not be ignored are the facts of the case.
1. There was less than a BILLIONTH OF A GRAM of the Clostebol found in both of his tests.
2. That amount… pic.twitter.com/n9xEVxV10j
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 20, 2024
It does not help that Sinner is still injured after aggravating his hip at Wimbledon 2024. He played great in Cincinnati but questions will still be raised after this controversy, which is the last thing he and his team needed.
It will take a lot of mental fortitude for Sinner to cut out the noise and forget the punishment handed out to him at the upcoming US Open and the last part of the 2024 season. With many indoor events and outdoor hard court events still to come, he has an opportunity to cover up for his lost points at Indian Wells and win more matches too.
These times could be testing for Sinner but could go a long way in proving whether he can be considered in the same category as Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. And the biggest benefactor of this could turn out to be Alcaraz, who is looking for a push of his own to finish the season in style after winning back-to-back Grand Slams.
