Brooksby receives provisional tennis suspension

American says he never failed a drug test and has never taken any substance

LONDON:

American Jenson Brooksby said Wednesday he is accepting a provisional suspension from tennis due to missed doping tests.

The 22-year-old was just outside the world's top 30 ranked players last year but has since fallen to 101 amid wrist injuries.

Anti-doping regulations allow for a potentially lengthy ban for players if they miss three tests in a year -- so-called 'whereabouts' failures.

Players are obliged to inform anti-doping bodies of their whereabouts in order to allow access for testers.

Brooksby said in a statement on Instagram that he denies the charges against him -- which have yet to be published.

"The provisional suspension is not an admission that I have done anything wrong; to the contrary, I have denied this charge and am waiting for an arbitration with an independent tribunal," he said.

"I have never failed a drug test and I have never taken any substances that I was not allowed to take. I have been tested numerous times including three times after surgery in March 2023," he added.

Citing one of the alleged missed tests, Brooksby said he was, at the time, in the hotel where he had stated he would be.

"I look forward to providing all the evidence and explaining what happened to an independent panel of arbitrators," he said, adding that he was looking forward to returning to the tour.