Former Australian tennis player John Millman has publicly supported the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) over its recent decision regarding world number one Jannik Sinner. Sinner, 23, is currently one of the top players in men’s tennis, alongside Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and Serbia’s Novak Djokovic.
Sinner faced a controversy after testing positive for a banned substance on two separate occasions. Despite this, he narrowly avoided a suspension. The ITIA’s decision has been met with criticism from parts of the tennis community, including players like Australia’s Nick Kyrgios and Canada’s Denis Shapovalov.
Millman, 35, defended the ITIA’s decision in a recent social media post. He compared the handling of Sinner’s case favorably to the ITIA’s earlier error with former women’s world number one Simona Halep, whose four-year ban was later overturned.
“Before jumping to conclusions, Jannik Sinner had less than a billionth of a gram in his system… I believe him 100 percent… maybe we should change the threshold to account for contamination. Also, why the uproar when we allow athletes in all sports, including tennis, to abuse TUEs?” Millman wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Furthermore, the ITIA handled this 1000 times better than the botched job with Simona. Jannik is one of the best people on tour. At least read the report before passing judgment.”
Sinner is currently enjoying a successful season, including his first Grand Slam title after defeating Russia’s Daniil Medvedev in a five-set final. He recently won the Cincinnati Open by beating America’s Frances Tiafoe in straight sets.
