When will Jannik Sinner return to tennis after ban?

Jannik Sinner will remain the World No. 1 when he turns up to play.

Jannik Sinner resumed training this week with Jack Draper as a sparring partner shortly before his return to the ATP Tour. The Italian will have to shake off three months of inactivity brought on by a part of his period of ineligibility. Due to his highly publicised doping violations, the 23-year-old has been missing in action since January, shortly after defending his Australian Open crown.

The controversy surrounding Sinner refuses to die, with Serena Williams sharing her thoughts on the topic this week in a conversation with Time Magazine. Among her candid thoughts was that though she counts herself as a fan of Sinner, if she were caught with performance-enhancing drugs in her system, she would have been given a lengthy ban and stripped of Grand Slam titles. 

Through the interview, she broadly hinted at double standards in the sport, raising concerns about fairness and consistency. Serena referred to the case of Maria Sharapova, who was given a two-year ban in 2016, with circumstances leading to her positive test mirrored Sinner’s.

Also Read: Which tournaments will Jannik Sinner miss due to doping ban?

Sinner and Draper were spotted in the seaside commune of Beaulieu-sur-Mer, France, putting in some practice on clay courts. The San Candido resident is just over a week away from returning to active tennis as the first Italian player to participate in the Italian Open as the ATP No. 1. 

In the three months Sinner was away, Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev were in the running to take the No. 1 position. However, they came up short thanks to a lacklustre three months. Only Alcaraz, who had won in Monte-Carlo, was able to close the gap somewhat. An early exit from Rome by Sinner could tilt the scales in the Spaniard’s favour and boost his chances to overtake Sinner ahead of his Roland Garros title defence.

The Italian World No. 1 is spending his 46th week at the top despite missing out on four ATP 1000s this season, including the Miami Open, where he was the defending champion. Indian Wells, Monte-Carlo, and the upcoming Madrid Open are the other three.

Playing at home will serve as an ideal springboard for the rest of the 2025 season and the fast-approaching French Open. Sinner’s best-ever result at Rome was the 2022 quarter-final appearance. Sinner went on to reach the semi-finals at the 2024 French Open for his best performance at the clay court event, but succumbed to Carlos Alcaraz in a five-set thriller, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 3-6. 

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