“Well, we cannot control everything,” he said, when asked about the timing of the announcement. “Obviously I’m very disappointed and also surprised of this appeal, to be honest, because we had three hearings. All three hearings came out very positively for me.
“You know, I was not expecting it. I knew a couple of days ago that they were going to appeal, that today it’s going to go official. But yeah, it’s a surprise. We always talk about the same thing.”
The reigning Australian Open and US Open champion also implied WADA were simply trying to act out of duty, adding: “Maybe they just want to make sure that everything is in the right position.”
Prior to his press conference, Sinner had underlined his ambition to defend his title in Beijing, having appeared below his best so far. He’ll now face unseeded Czech player Jiri Lehecka in the last eight on Monday.
“If I want to win this tournament, I need to raise my level,” he admitted, in his post-match interview on court. “This is also our goal. I think I play after tomorrow so I have a rest day and I’ll try to get into my rhythm.
“If I want to win my next round, I have to raise my level. But also today was a high level match. He’s an incredible player. We’ve always had great battles. Let’s see what’s coming.”
However, the publicity surrounding WADA’s announcement is set to overshadow the remainder of Sinner’s season. But despite pushing for a suspension, the authority have confirmed that his 2024 titles will stand regardless of the outcome.
It was announced in August that Sinner, 23, had received an anti-doping sanction and been stripped of his prize money and ranking points from the Indian Wells Masters in March, due to twice testing positive for Clostebol.
The results were attributed to his physio Giacomo Naldi using the substance to treat a cut on his own finger before massaging the world No.1 without gloves.