Novak Djokovic expressed his frustration at being "kept in the dark" about world number one Jannik Sinner's doping case, saying in Brisbane on Sunday that it was not a good look for tennis.
Anti-doping authorities said in August Sinner twice tested positive in March for the anabolic androgenic steroid clostebol and was cleared of wrongdoing by an independent tribunal that accepted his explanation of unintentional contamination.
The 23-year-old Italian faces a potential ban of up to two years after the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed that decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
"It's not a good image and not a good look for our sport," Djokovic told reporters ahead of the Brisbane International. "You don't want to see that. I believe that in the last 20-plus years that I've been playing on the professional tour that we've been one of the cleanest sports. I'll keep believing in that clean sport.
"I'm just questioning the way the system works, really, and why certain players are not treated the same as other players."
Sinner's was not the only recent high-profile case in the sport as world number two Iga Swiatek accepted a one-month ban that ended on Dec. 4 after a positive test for trimetazidine, which she said was due to contamination of her sleep medication.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency maintains that all doping cases are dealt with based on facts and evidence and not a player's name, ranking or nationality, but has not been able to fend off allegations of double standards.
"The issue is the inconsistency and the transparency. We've been kept in the dark with Jannik's case," Djokovic added. "I'm not questioning whether he took the banned substance intentionally or not. I believe in a clean sport, I believe that the player will do everything possible to be playing fair.
"I've known Jannik since he was very young. He doesn't strike me as somebody who would do such a thing. But I've been really frustrated as (have) most of the other players to see that we've been kept in the dark for five months."
Outspoken Australian Nick Kyrgios said the cases involving Sinner and Swiatek were "disgusting" for the sport and slammed authorities over what he saw as lenient treatment.
'Years to come'
Djokovic said he planned to keep playing for "years to come" -- with more tournaments on his schedule in 2025 -- as he looks to take down the new guard led by Sinner and Carlos Alzaraz.
The 37-year-old had a disappointing campaign last year by his standards, failing to win a Grand Slam and claiming just one title -- Olympic gold in Paris.
He has slipped to number seven in the world and said he wanted to get his ranking back to "where it should be".
"I'm looking for a good start to the season, I'm looking for more consistency across all the tournaments," he said as he prepared to play at the Brisbane International this week.
"I'm looking to play more tournaments this year than I played last season, so hopefully also my level is going to go up.
"Hopefully I will win a few more tournaments and my ranking will go up to where it should be."
The 24-time Grand Slam champion is beginning a season for the first time without any of the other so-called "Big Four" on the other side of the net following the retirements this year of Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.
Roger Federer called it quits in 2022.
As they faded, Sinner and Alcaraz stepped up to become the new Grand Slam kings.
Djokovic, who is targeting an 11th Australian Open title next month and a record 25th Grand Slam crown, said he had no thoughts of retirement despite turning 38 in May.
"The way I'm feeling today, I still think that I can go strong for years to come," he said.
"But how long I'm going to feel motivated to keep going is unpredictable.
"I still love this sport and I still love competing."
The Serb, the top seed, starts his campaign against Australian wildcard Rinky Hijikata in what will be his first official tournament since losing to Sinner in the final of the 2024 Shanghai Masters in October.Djokovic will also play doubles alongside Nick Kyrgios, who is making a competitive return after playing just one ATP Tour singles match in two years following knee, foot and wrist injuries.
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