World No 1 Jannik Sinner has reportedly parted company with two members of his team following their roles in his two failed drugs tests earlier this year.
Sinner first tested positive for banned anabolic steroid clostebol during Indian Wells on March 10, then again eight days later.
The Italian was provisionally suspended, but on both occasions he successfully appealed and was allowed to continue playing while the tribunal assessed the evidence.
Last week, following a lengthy investigation, Sinner’s explanation for why there had been an extremely small quantity of clostebol in his system – less than a billionth of a gram – was accepted.
The explanation provided by Sinner was that a month before travelling to Indian Wells, his fitness coach Umberto Ferrara bought an over-the-counter spray containing the steroid in Italy. Then during the Indian Wells event, Sinner’s physio Giacomo Naldi cut his finger and was advised by Ferrara to use the spray to treat the wound.
Physio Giacomo Naldi (left) and fitness coach Umberto Ferrara (right) pictured with Jannik Sinner (centre) after the tennis star won the Australian Open in January
Twenty-three-year-old Sinner has reportedly since parted company with Naldi and Ferrera
According to a statement from the Sinner team: ‘The physiotherapist treated Jannik and his lack of care coupled with various open wounds on Jannik’s body caused the contamination.’
The tribunal heard that Sinner suffers from skin condition psoriasiform dermatitis, which can cause irritation and, if scratched, cuts and sores. This was accepted as the reason for the clostebol entering his body via the physio’s finger.
According to Corriere Dello Sport, Ferrara and Naldi have since been cut from Team Sinner as a consequence of their roles in the contamination fiasco.
Sinner won his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January before reaching the semi-finals at Roland Garros in June.
He has been ranked No 1 in the world for the last 11 weeks.
Sinner won the Cincinnati Masters on Monday by beating Frances Tiafoe in the final.
Naldi and Ferrara were not in his box in Cincinnati.
World No 1 Sinner won the Cincinnati Masters on Monday by beating Frances Tiafoe in the final
Sinner celebrated his triumph with coaches Simone Vagnozzi (left) and Darren Cahill (right) but Naldi and Ferrera were not pictured with him during the tournament
Sinner will be the No 1 seed at this year’s US Open, where his first opponent will be American Mackenzie McDonald next week.
This will be Sinner’s sixth appearance in the main draw at Flushing Meadows. He has only gone beyond the fourth round once and never past the quarter-finals.
