Jannik Sinner will arrive in New York on Monday as the men's top seed and one of the leading contenders to win his second Grand Slam title at the US Open. He also does so at the centre of a doping storm that has split the opinion of the tennis world and is now dominating the build-up to the season's fourth and final major tournament.
It was announced on Tuesday that world No 1 Sinner tested positive during Indian Wells in March for low levels of the banned substance clostebol, a steroid that can be used to aid in building muscle mass. A second test was administered eight days later that also tested positive for the same substance.
The 23-year-old Italian was handed an immediate provisional suspension but was allowed to continue playing having successfully challenged the decision. Sinner maintained that he had been contaminated by his physiotherapist Giacomo Naldi, who had applied an over-the-counter spray, which contained clostebol, to a cut on his own hand before carrying out treatments on Sinner.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted Sinner's explanation that he had been inadvertently contaminated, with an independent tribunal clearing the Australian Open champion of fault or negligence. A statement from the ITIA revealed less than a billionth of a gram of clostebol was detected in the tests.
Sinner did not escape completely punishment-free as the Italian was stripped of the 400 ranking points he won at Indian Wells and the $325,000 prize money.
“I will now put this challenging and deeply unfortunate period behind me," Sinner said in a statement. "I will continue to do everything I can to ensure I comply with the ITIA’s anti-doping programme and I have a team around me that are meticulous in their own compliance.”
Sinner may be happy to move on, but some of his peers are not. Former Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios suggested he is not buying the explanation and was left bemused at the lack of a lengthy suspension.
“Ridiculous - whether it was accidental or planned. You get tested twice with a banned (steroid) substance ... you should be gone for 2 years,” Kyrgios wrote on X. “Your performance was enhanced. Massage cream ... Yeah nice.”
Former world No 10 Denis Shapovalov directed his ire at the authorities for a lack of consistency. Perhaps the most famous doping case in tennis history involved Maria Sharapova, one of the sport's biggest stars who in 2016 tested positive for meldonium, a substance that had been recently added to the banned list. On appeal, she was found not to have intentionally doped and was cleared of fault but was still banned for 15 months.
“Can’t imagine what every other player that got banned for contaminated substances is feeling right now,” Shapovalov wrote on X. “Different rules for different players.”
Meanwhile, British player Liam Broady criticised the lack of due process, which allowed Sinner to continue playing for the past five months while the investigation was underway when typically players serve provisional suspensions.
“Whether Sinner was doping or not. This is not right," Broady wrote on X. "Plenty of players go through the same thing and have to wait months or years for their innocence to be declared. Not a good look.”
Sinner did find an ally in John Millman, with the Australian posting on social media: “Before jumping to conclusions, Jannik Sinner had less than a billionth of a gram in his system. I believe him 100 per cent ... maybe we should change threshold [to] cater for contamination."
It is Broady's point that is most worth addressing. Whether Sinner intentionally doped or not – and, without knowing all the facts, the miniscule amount of detected clostebol suggests he didn't – the Italian has been free to compete, collect ranking points, and earn money when many others have served bans in similar situations.
Between the failed tests at Indian Wells in March and the conclusion of the investigation this week, Sinner has played eight ATP tournaments, participated in the Olympic Games, won three titles, collected 4,500 ATP points, and earned almost $4.5 million. Without those points, the Italian would have slipped to world No 5 and would enter next week's US Open as the fifth seed, theoretically handing him a more challenging route to the final.
Instead, it would have been world No 2 Novak Djokovic and third-ranked Carlos Alcaraz – separated by just 100 points – who would have been jostling for the top ranking ahead of the US Open. Spare a thought also for Grigor Dimitrov, Hubert Hurkacz, and Frances Tiafoe, who were respectively beaten in the Miami, Halle, and Cincinnati finals by Sinner, denying them trophies and precious ranking points shortly before Grand Slams.
The ATP will, of course, not want this saga to be the main focus in the lead-up to the US Open as a season that has witnessed a clear changing of the guard, centrally involving Sinner, edges towards its conclusion. However, Sinner's perceived preferential treatment has shone a renewed light on the alleged inconsistencies of the ITIA, and given the Italian's status as the world's best player, it will be an unwelcome distraction in New York.
Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Essentials
The flights
Whether you trek after mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda or the Congo, the most convenient international airport is in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali. There are direct flights from Dubai a couple of days a week with RwandAir. Otherwise, an indirect route is available via Nairobi with Kenya Airways. Flydubai flies to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Entebbe in Uganda. Expect to pay from US$350 (Dh1,286) return, including taxes.
The tours
Superb ape-watching tours that take in all three gorilla countries mentioned above are run by Natural World Safaris. In September, the company will be operating a unique Ugandan ape safari guided by well-known primatologist Ben Garrod.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, local operator Kivu Travel can organise pretty much any kind of safari throughout the Virunga National Park and elsewhere in eastern Congo.
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Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
Gully Boy
Director: Zoya Akhtar
Producer: Excel Entertainment & Tiger Baby
Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Kalki Koechlin, Siddhant Chaturvedi
Rating: 4/5 stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
MEFCC information
Tickets range from Dh110 for an advance single-day pass to Dh300 for a weekend pass at the door. VIP tickets have sold out. Visit www.mefcc.com to purchase tickets in advance.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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3.
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UAE
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4.
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Japan
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5
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Company%20Profile
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THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: 3/5
Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
Dhadak
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
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Your Guide to the Home
- Level 1 has a valet service if you choose not to park in the basement level. This level houses all the kitchenware, including covetable brand French Bull, along with a wide array of outdoor furnishings, lamps and lighting solutions, textiles like curtains, towels, cushions and bedding, and plenty of other home accessories.
- Level 2 features curated inspiration zones and solutions for bedrooms, living rooms and dining spaces. This is also where you’d go to customise your sofas and beds, and pick and choose from more than a dozen mattress options.
- Level 3 features The Home’s “man cave” set-up and a display of industrial and rustic furnishings. This level also has a mother’s room, a play area for children with staff to watch over the kids, furniture for nurseries and children’s rooms, and the store’s design studio.
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Transmission: seven-speed automatic
Power: 400hp
Torque: 560Nm
Price: Dh234,000 - Dh329,000
On sale: now
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
