BRISBANE, Australia — With his much-anticipated return to competitive tennis looming at the Brisbane International, Nick Kyrgios did not hold back his opinions regarding recent doping allegations involving Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek, labeling these incidents as “disgusting for our sport.”
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has brought charges against world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and former top player Iga Swiatek. Sinner tested positive on two occasions for an anabolic steroid in March but managed to avoid a suspension due to the ITIA’s finding that he was not at fault. Meanwhile, Swiatek accepted a one-month suspension last November after testing positive for the banned substance trimetazidine.
Kyrgios, speaking at a press conference prior to the tournament, expressed his dismay over the situation. “Two world No. 1s both getting caught for doping is disgusting for our sport. It’s a horrible look,” he stated. “The integrity of tennis at the moment — everyone knows it, but no one wants to talk about it — is in a terrible state.”
Having not competed in tournament tennis since June 2023 due to injuries to his wrist and knee, Kyrgios was prompted to comment on the cases involving Sinner and Swiatek. “Someone like me…I would never even think about doping, not in a million years,” Kyrgios emphasized. He reflected on how injuries might tempt others to seek accelerated recovery through banned substances. “There are so many prohibited things that could potentially speed up my healing process, but that’s just not who I am. I’m always against that,” he asserted.
In Sinner’s case, he maintained that a mishap by his physiotherapist led to contamination with clostebol, which was transferred from a cut on the therapist’s hand during treatment. Kyrgios raised concerns regarding the delay in addressing the issue. “I pay my team hundreds of thousands of dollars to be the professionals they are to ensure that doesn’t happen,” Kyrgios mentioned. “So they knew it occurred. Why did they wait five to six months to take action? He kept his team for five months…that doesn’t make sense.”
The tournament marks Kyrgios’s first match since the Stuttgart Open in June 2023, following a tough period where he faced potentially career-ending injuries since the U.S. Open quarterfinals in 2022. He will face Giovanni Perricard of France in the first round in Brisbane. Kyrgios is also scheduled to participate in the Australian Open starting January 12, marking his return to Grand Slam singles action after over two years.
Additionally, Kyrgios, who triumphed at the Brisbane International in 2018, will team up with Novak Djokovic in doubles. Djokovic, the top seed at the tournament, is set to play against Australia’s Rinky Hijikata in his opening match. Both Kyrgios and Djokovic are positioned in the upper half of the singles draw, with the possibility of facing each other in the semifinals if they progress through the tournament successfully.
