Former Wimbledon finalist blasts 'ridiculous' ruling following Jannik Sinner steroid scandal

Jannik Sinner won't be suspended after the International Tennis Integrity Agency determined on Tuesday that, despite testing positive for an anabolic steroid twice in March, the substance entered the top-ranked player in the world's system unintentionally through a massage from his physiotherapist.

Sinner will lose the $325,000 and 400 points that he earned at the March tournament in Indian Wells, but former Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios blasted the ruling as "ridiculous" on social media on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old Sinner fell to eventual-champion Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals of the BNP Paribas Open on March 16 .

Since a strong 2022 season including a U.S. Open quarterfinal berth and a spot in the Wimbledon finals, Kyrgios' last two years have been plagued by injuries.

He missed the 2023 Australian Open with a knee injury that required surgery and opted out of the French Open after suffering a foot injury during an armed robbery at his home. Kyrgios also missed the 2023 Wimbledon tournament after tearing a ligament in his wrist that caused him to sit out the rest of the year.

While recovering, the Australian began his broadcasting career on Tennis Channel and later on ESPN for the 2024 Australian Open. Kyrgios later worked as a commentator and analyst for 2024 Wimbledon, calling the men's singles final between Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic and the women's singles championship between Barbora Krejcikova and Jasmine Paolini.

After his first semifinal appearance at a Grand Slam in 2023 (Wimbledon), Sinner has had an even more eventful 2024.

The Italian earned his first major title at the Australian Open, defeating Daniil Medvedev after trailing by two sets. Sinner later made the French Open semifinals and arrived at the All-England Club as the top seed for the Wimbledon Championships.

Medvedev exacted revenge on Sinner in the July tournament, however, coming back to win a five-set thriller in the quarterfinals, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 2-6, 6-3.

Sinner was reportedly "hampered by illness, with a doctor called to the court to check his blood pressure in the third set before a lengthy medical timeout" during the match against Medvedev. Weeks later, he announced that he wouldn't be competing in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris due to tonsillitis .

Sinner will next compete at the U.S. Open, which began on Monday.