Tennis legend Serena Williams weighs in on Jannik Sinner ban: Men's tennis needs him

ATP world No. 1 Sinner is currently serving a three-month ban from tennis after settling his longstanding doping case with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) back in February 2025.

The Italian twice tested positive for the banned steroid clostebol in March 2024 and was found to have been of "no fault or negligence" by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) in August 2024.

The ITIA accepted Sinner's claim that he had accidentally been contaminated by a team member, and did not hand the 23-year-old a suspension as a result.

However, WADA appealed against the leniency of Sinner's sanction and were set to take their case to the Court of Arbitration of Sport before the respective parties settled, resulting in a three-month ban for the three-time Grand Slam winner.

Sinner is the reigning US Open and Australian Open champion, and is guaranteed to still be world No. 1 when he returns to court once his ban ends on May 4, 2025.

Williams and Sinner met at the Miami Open back in 2024, a tournament he would go on to win.

Speaking in an interview with Time, the tennis icon hailed the Italian and described him as "great" for the sport.

However, she also claimed that she would have been punished more significantly had she committed the same infraction.

"Fantastic personality," says Williams. "I love the guy, I love this game. He's great for the sport.

"I've been put down so much, I don't want to bring anyone down.

"Men's tennis needs him, [but] if I did that [fail a drugs test], I would have gotten 20 years. Let's be honest. I would have gotten Grand Slams taken away from me."

The perceived favourable treatment of Sinner has attracted controversy ever since news of his violation emerged in August 2024.

Several have contrasted how the 23-year-old was treated compared to the likes of Simona Halep and Maria Sharapova, a leading contemporary of Williams â- and a fellow leading star of their generation.

Sharapova was handed a two-year suspension after testing positive for meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open, though her ban was later decreased to 15 months on appeal.

Much like Sinner, governing bodies ruled that Sharapova's offence was unintentional, with the Russian have claimed at the time that she had not realised the substance had been banned.

Reflecting on her former rival's case, Williams revealed that she felt some sympathy for Sharapova, considering the significant difference in the respective sanctions.

She added: "Just weirdly and oddly, I can't help but think about Maria all this time - I can't help but feel for her."

Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion and former world No. 1, was speaking after being named in the Time100 for 2025.

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