“Current players setting bad examples for young generations,” wrote Nick Kyrgios on social media while expressing his unfiltered thoughts on Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner’s doping scandals. Ever since the news of the Pole’s positive doping test surfaced on Thursday, the Australian has come up with harsh reactions on the former World No.1. Especially given the fact that she’s the second top-ranked player in 2024, after the Fox, to come under scanner for doping. However, Kyrgios is not the only one criticizing them. A Canadian WTA pro has now come forward, echoing his sentiments!

Both of Sinner and Swiatek had mentioned in their justification regarding the positive tests that they weren’t really aware of the banned substance. Sinner revealed that the contamination in his case was due to a cream applied on his body by his physio. On the other hand, Swiatek mentioned she had no idea that her medication (melatonin) was actually contaminated. The Australian was cleared disappointed with them.

On Friday, Nick Kyrgios reflected on their reasoning, and wrote, “The excuse that we can all use is that we didn’t know. Simply didn’t know. Professionals at the highest level of sport can now just say “we didn’t know”. He wanted to say that such explanations indicate that a player is avoiding accountability by just being naïve. Well, it seems like Canadian player Eugenie Bouchard also agrees with Kyrgios. It becomes quite evident from her response to his post where she simply wrote “Guess so”. 

Speaking of the Pole, she doesn’t seem to have a moment of relief as of now. Nick and Eugenie are not the only ones pointing fingers at her.

Tara Moore targets Iga Swiatek while questioning the ITIA

The British WTA pro wasn’t happy after learning of Iga Swiatek‘s doping controversy. However, she had her own reason to be upset, considering the manner in which the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) handled the Pole’s case. For those unaware, Iga had received a provisional suspension from September 12 to October 4, after her doping results came positive. Additionally, she was also handed a 1-month ban. Now, here’s where the complicated twist comes in.

According to ITIA’s verdict, the 1-month ban for Swiatek is still in effect and will end on December 4. However, she was still allowed to play in the WTA Finals and then the BJK Cup in Malaga, when the ban was active. That’s something Moore couldn’t understand as she wrote in her post on X, “Wait… so she was supposed to be suspended until Dec 4th yet played BJK cup.. which was (correct me if I’m wrong) LAST WEEK. HOW WAS SHE ALLOWED TO PLAY WHILST BEING SUSPENDED??? Someone plz explain cause I’m spiralling.”

For the unversed, Moore herself had faced a ban after testing positive in June 2022. She was handed a 19-month suspension where she couldn’t play any competitive match. However, she was cleared last year, in December, after the ITIA found that her failed test was caused by contaminated meat.

Moore’s argument is that Iga not only received a shorter ban, but also participated in two major events. And she was allowed to do that when her ban was not even over. Interestingly, an ITIA spokesperson mentioned that “No two cases are the same, they often involve different circumstances, and direct comparisons are not always helpful” while defending Iga’s position. What do you think about this entire matter? Do you believe there’s a lack of transparencies in ITIA’s rules for different players? Let us know in the comments below.