Serena Williams: If I were Sinner, I would have been banned for 20 years, even jailed, and deprived of a Grand Slam title

A few days ago, Time magazine announced the 100 most influential people in the world in 2025, and the now retired American tennis legend and 23-time Grand Slam winner Serena Williams is on the list. In an interview with Time magazine, Williams talked about his rich life after retiring, and the clip of talking about the current men's tennis world No. 1 Sinner sparked heated discussions.

Serena Williams is a self-proclaimed big fan of Sinner: "He's got a great personality and I admire this kid and I love watching him play. He has been of great benefit to the sport. However, she also admitted to being surprised that Sinner was banned for three months a year ago for testing positive for doping. According to his team, Sinner's physical therapist at the time used an over-the-counter spray containing the illicit drug clostib to treat the wound in March last year, during which time he provided massage therapy to Sinner, resulting in unwitting contamination.

In February, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) announced a settlement with Sinner, with the Italian accepting a three-month ban from February 9 to May 4 of this year. Although Sinner is currently away from tour, he does not need to miss any major tournaments and will be able to compete in his hometown tournament, the Rome Masters. As a result, many players believe that Sinner has received special treatment.

Serena Williams was selected as one of the top 100 influential people of the times

"I've been repressed too much, so I don't want to suppress anyone. Men's tennis needs a player like him. She said she was looking forward to seeing Sinner back at the Rome Masters, but she changed her mind, "But if I do that, I'm going to be banned for 20 years." Seriously, my Grand Slam titles could all be revoked. However, Serena Williams clarified that she had no ill will towards Sinner.

Williams said that throughout her career, she has always been extremely cautious about the substances her body ingests, and even Advil, a powerful painkiller, does not dare to take it lightly, for fear of accidentally ingesting any ingredients that may cause trouble to the upper body. If she is involved in a doping scandal, she half-jokingly says, "Then I'm afraid I'll have to 'go to jail.'" You'll probably only see this kind of news about me in alternate universes. "

In addition, Serena Williams couldn't help but speculate about the opinion of her former rival Sharapova on the matter. In 2016, Sharapova was found to have taken the banned drug meldonium, and although she was found guilty of an unintentional violation, similar to the case in Sinner's case, she was sentenced to a two-year ban (reduced to 15 months on appeal). "Strange to say, I can't help but think of Maria [Sharapova] these days," Williams said, "and I can't help but feel sorry for her." (Sharapova declined to comment.) ）

Sinner (Photo: Visual China)

On April 17, local time, world No. 1 Sinner had his first public training session since being banned, training with Draper, the current world No. 6 and this year's Indian Wells Masters champion. The two have a good personal relationship, having played together in the men's doubles event at the Rogers Cup last year.

Sinner's current fitness coach Marco Panic recently revealed the recent situation of the Italian star. Marco Panic, who has worked with Djokovic for a long time, officially joined Sinner's team in September last year.

Marco Panich (right)

Pictured: Player social media

"From the moment we learned of the ban, there was a strong convergence of the players, the team and the agent's team: to make the most of this period. We immediately realized that we could take this opportunity to be well prepared and get rid of the usual distractions from frequent travel and racing through systematic research and planning. To be clear, we are by no means happy with Yannick's suspension, but we have developed a plan to deal with it positively. "

"What's more, during these three months, he gave himself time to recuperate, rediscover himself, and is now in a period of adjustment. I am very pleased that he is in a new state of mind and that he will return to Roma with unprecedented motivation and great competitive form. "

(Text, Editor/Faye Wong)