Rafael Nadal tells CNN exclusively that he ‘100%' believes Jannik Sinner is innocent amid return from doping suspension
Sinner is approaching the end of a three-month ban having twice tested positive for banned substance Clostebol, an anabolic steroid, in March last year.
The three-time grand slam champion previously escaped a ban when the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) ruled that he wasn't at fault for the positive tests, accepting that the contamination was caused by a physio applying an over-the-counter spray.
However, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) subsequently lodged an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), leading to Sinner accepting a suspension from February 9 to May 4.
In a February statement, Sinner said that he has 'always accepted that I am responsible for my team' but has always denied knowingly taking a banned substance.
'I don't have a clear opinion, first of all, because I don't have the whole information,' Nadal told CNN after being honored with the Sporting Icon Award at this year's Laureus World Sports Awards.
'First of all, I 100% believe that Jannik is innocent. I don't think at all that Jannik wanted to do something that is not allowed, so I 100% believe in Jannik.'
The saga around Sinner has shone the spotlight on the current anti-doping protocols in tennis, with several players raising concerns about possible preferential treatment for the top stars.
Sinner, for example, won't miss any grand slam events during his ban.
Recently, Serena Williams said she would have been banned for '20 years' and 'gotten grand slams taken away' if the same thing had happened to her. She did, though, describe Sinner as a 'fantastic personality' and 'great for the sport.'
Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic said that the whole case was 'not a good image for our sport.'
But Nadal, who retired from tennis last year following a historic career, said he has full trust in the current anti-doping system.
'From my point of view, I really don't believe that Jannik, because he's the No. 1 in the world, received different treatment than another person, from my perspective and from my understanding,' the 22-time grand slam singles champion said.
'I really believe in the process, I have been there going through all the tests for 20 years, how the things are strict on every single movement … and I believe in the process.
'I can't say another thing and I can't think another way because, if not, I will think that we are not in a fair world, and I really believe that we are in a fair world in this matter.'
Despite his ban, Sinner will be one of the favorites to win his first French Open title when the tournament starts at the end of May.
Nadal, who won a record 14 Coupes des Mousquetaires at Roland Garros, said he hopes a potential Sinner win won't be tarnished by questions around his eligibility to play.
However, for Sinner to claim the title, he will first have to find a way past the likes of Carlos Alcaraz, who many have compared to Nadal.
Not only are both from Spain, but both are formidable on clay with Alcaraz winning his first French Open title last year.
Nadal, who retired with 22 grand slam singles trophies, said the comparisons are only natural and holds high hopes that the 21-year-old can reach the very top of the sport.
'All of us received the pressure from the media and from the hope that people have about you, but I think at the end, we are humans and we know how to handle that,' Nadal told CNN.
'I don't think for Carlos it's a big deal holding that pressure. He's a great player and has a great family behind (him).
'I think he's doing great and he's having an amazing career and he's going to win much more if he stays out of injury – that's the most important thing. I wish and I really believe that he's going to have one of the best careers of all time.'
Nadal said he occasionally messages Alcaraz but would always be on hand to provide some advice – not that he thinks the youngster needs it.
It's an invitation that the 38-year-old extends to all players on the tour who might want to casually learn from his own experiences.
However, Nadal has so far resisted following the likes of Andy Murray, who has gone into coaching after retiring from a playing career.
'I mean in this life you can never say never,' he said, adding he was enjoying spending more time with family without all the travel that comes with being on tour.
'It's difficult to imagine myself now doing this kind of thing … it's not my moment, at all. I am in a different moment of my life and I don't see myself traveling now with a player.'
Instead, Nadal is happy to continue developing his tennis academy which is starting to breed success across the game, adding to the Spaniard's already impressive tennis legacy.
And, even in retirement, Nadal has not stopped picking up trophies. In addition to being given the aforementioned Laureus Sporting Icon Award, the Spaniard will also be honored in a ceremony at this year's French Open.
'The results are the results, you know. I won what I won, I lost what I lost, that's the results and nobody can change that,' Nadal said when asked what he wants to be remembered for now that his playing days are behind him.
'Of course, I will be remembered as a good tennis player, but for me, it's important to be remembered as a good person, a player who fights as hard as possible but with positive values, being always fair and correct with everyone on court.
'Trying to respect every single moment, for me that's the most important thing.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Chicago Tribune
4 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
‘Dehumanizing': Inside the Broadview ICE facility where immigrants sleep on cold concrete
The sounds of weeping mothers curled on cold concrete floors echoed through the walls at the federal immigration processing center in Broadview, keeping Gladis Chavez awake for most of the night. The cries came in waves, she recalled. Quiet whimpers, choked gasps and occasional prayers. About children left behind and fears of what would happen next. Most of the women who had been detained at a routine check-in June 4 at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Chicago now had nothing but each other and a few jackets they shared to fight off the nightly chill that seeped into their bones in a nondescript brick building just off the Eisenhower Expressway. By day three, Chavez said, her body ached with exhaustion. On day four, she and some of the other women were finally transferred out. The west suburban processing center is designed to hold people for no more than 12 hours before transferring them to a formal immigration detention facility. It has no beds, let alone any covers, Chavez said. They were not offered showers or hot food. No toothbrushes or feminine products. And certainly, Chavez recalled, those detained had no answers from immigration authorities about what would happen next. An investigation by the Chicago Tribune found that immigration detainees such as Chavez have been held for days at the processing center, a two-story building that is designed as a temporary way station until detainees can be transferred to jails out of state. For busier periods in June, data shows the typical detainee was held two or three days — far longer than the five or so hours typical in years past. The findings, which come from a Tribune analysis of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement data obtained and shared by the research group Deportation Data Project, show that the federal agency has routinely violated ICE's internal guidelines, which say the facility shouldn't hold people for more than 12 hours. Chavez became one of hundreds of people held in the facility for longer than 12 hours under the latest crackdown. Data showed that at least three people spent six or more days there. 'There were nearly 30 other women there in a single big room. Most were mothers who couldn't stop crying. The group of men were in a separate room,' Chavez said in Spanish, speaking to the Tribune in a Zoom interview from Honduras. In the group, she said, she met women who were nursing, pregnant women and elderly women. 'I never want any of my children, or any other person to go through this. It's dehumanizing, they treat us worse than criminals,' Chavez said. ICE, for its part, declined to respond to questions about the Tribune's findings and has not released its own data calculating how often it has held people in Broadview. But on the agency's website, it says it employs 'a robust, multilevel oversight and compliance program' to ensure each facility follows a 'strict set of detention standards.' A spokesperson for ICE reportedly told ABC 7 that: 'Any accusations that detainees are treated inhumanely in any way are categorically false. … There are occasions where detainees might need to stay at the Broadview office longer than the anticipated administrative processing time. While these instances are a rarity, detainees in such situations are given ample food, regular access to phones, showers and legal representation as well as medical care when needed.' Few can get inside to see what's going on, frustrating immigrant rights advocates and their allies in Congress. In mid-June, as the facility was cycling through detainees such as Chavez, four Democratic members of Congress were denied entry into the Broadview facility during an unannounced visit. On Wednesday, a dozen Democratic members of Congress who have been blocked from making oversight visits at immigration detention centers filed a federal lawsuit against President Donald Trump's administration that seeks to ensure they are granted entry into the facilities, including Broadview, even without prior notice. In Illinois, immigrant rights advocates are urging Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul to investigate the Broadview facility's ownership structure and contractual agreements with federal immigration authorities. They're also calling for a full site inspection and for the state to use all available legal tools to shut the facility down. State and local officials, however, say there's little they can do to force the U.S. government to change how it operates a federal facility. The longer detention times in Broadview have come as the Trump administration has pushed a massive boost in arrests while scrambling to build out the infrastructure to handle them, creating logistical logjams that can be particularly felt in Illinois, which has forbid local jails from holding ICE detainees. That means anyone arrested in the Chicago area must be sent out of state, once they're processed by ICE. So, for now, that can mean a small processing facility in the western suburbs — one that rarely held anyone overnight during the final years of President Joe Biden's administration — can end up warehousing dozens of detainees as they await ICE to move them. State Sen. Omar Aquino, a Chicago Democrat, was the primary sponsor of the Illinois Way Forward Act, which also limited local jails from contracting with ICE. He did not respond to questions regarding the unintentional hardships detainees are now facing because of the law. Instead, he said he 'stand(s) by the progress we have made in solidifying Illinois as a welcoming state, where immigrant families can live without fear and raise their children in a safe and supportive environment.' Chavez, who had been an immigration advocate in Chicago for nearly a decade, was deported on July 13 back to her native Honduras after spending more than a month in different ICE facilities in Illinois and Kentucky. She said she still feels traumatized by a system that separated her from her children and grandchildren while causing emotional and physical pain. Her ankles are still swollen from being shackled as she moved from one facility to another flown back to Honduras. 'I'm trying to heal both emotionally and physically,' she said. In 2023, the Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency of ICE, described the Broadview facility as a '12-hour hold facility with the typical stay of approximately five hours,' with a DHS auditor noting that 'absent exceptional circumstances, no detainee should be housed in a holding facility for longer than 12 hours.' When the members of Congress attempted to visit the site in June, Rep. Delia Ramirez noted, in a speech on the House floor, that ICE had posted a sign saying that the agency only 'processes' arrestees there and 'does not house aliens at these locations.' Yet, ICE's own data would suggest otherwise. The Tribune examined an ICE dataset, provided through the Deportation Data Project, that recorded dates and times of everyone detained at an ICE facility across the country, from September 2023 through June 26. The data had limitations. ICE recorded a time, down to the minute, when each person was checked in and out, but the Tribune found that the logs sometimes recorded people leaving Broadview only a minute or two before entering another facility hundreds of miles away, suggesting ICE may not have properly logged when someone left. To adjust for that, the Tribune computed earlier times people may have left Broadview, based on reasonable travel times from Broadview to the next ICE facilities — calculated through online mapping software and more plausible entries by ICE for others sent the same places. Even adjusting down the length of potential stays in Broadview, the analysis found a clear jump in how long detainees were held there, particularly earlier this summer. The median time logged for someone — meaning that half had shorter stays and half had longer — jumped beyond 12 hours for people booked into Broadview by mid-June. The median time continued rising as the month continued, eclipsing 24 hours for the typical detainee before they left Broadview, and then two days and sometimes three days. Even when the figures were averaged out over seven days — to smooth out any abnormally busy or slow days — the median stay in Broadview approached 48 hours for detainees, or four times as long as the 12-hour ICE guideline. While the ICE data doesn't name those detained, Chavez's biographical data and description of her journey through ICE facilities matched what was logged for one person. The log describes a Honduran woman as a widow, born the same year as her, with no criminal record but a deportation order issued in January, who was booked into the Broadview facility the morning of June 4 and not transferred out until more than three days later. The Tribune analysis found that ICE booked more arrestees on June 4 — 88 — than any on other day covered by the data. They joined another 23 who had been shipped that day to Broadview from facilities in Wisconsin and Indiana that house ICE detainees, as ICE shuffled detainees across the country. That made it the busiest day for bookings in Broadview through late June, as ICE ramped up enforcement in the Chicago area, and fueled the long stays in a place where advocates and family members of the detained say people have been held without basic necessities or medical care. In the federal government's 2023 audit of the facility, it confirmed the facility has six holding cells — two large ones, two smaller ones and two single-occupancy — with the four largest cells each having a toilet for detainees to share, as well as 'a place to sit while awaiting processing.' The audit said the facility lacked a medical unit, medical staff, food facilities or food staff. 'While the two large holding rooms are equipped with a single shower; these showers are inoperable, and the space is currently used for storage,' the 2023 audit noted. Marina Lopez Perez also was detained on June 4 after she showed up to a check-in with ICE in its South Loop facility. The Guatemala native spent three days in Broadview before she was taken to Grayson Country Detention Center in Kentucky, where she awaits her release or deportation. She left behind three children, two of them U.S. citizens, and a husband. She calls when she can, said her husband, who asked that his name be withheld, fearing ICE retaliation. Though he first tried to shield their two younger kids from the truth, telling them that their mother was at work, time, fear and reality that she may be deported, caught up to him. Now the children know, though they don't fully understand, that their mother is in jail. 'There are times when I hear her crying through the phone,' Lopez's husband said. 'I know it is not easy to be in there.' Their older son, a 13-year-old, whose name the Tribune is withholding at the family's request, said he worries constantly about his mother, especially after learning about the complaints of conditions at facilities such as Broadview. 'There are nights when I can't sleep thinking about my mom,' the teen said. 'I wonder if she's sleeping, or if she even got to eat.' Immigrant rights advocates complain that such conditions not only violate detainees' human rights, but also ICE's own policies. 'It's overflowed. They're not able to take people out within the times they are supposed to,' said Brandon Lee, with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. In July, advocates outlined their concerns about the Broadview facility's violations of state law in a letter to Raoul and Cook County State's Attorney Eileen O'Neill Burke, asking for their support. But both elected officials said that they do not possess direct investigating authority over ICE. Raoul added that only Congress could step in, while noting that reports of conditions at Broadview, 'while disturbing, are consistent with the deplorable conditions we have seen at federal ICE facilities around the nation.' Fred Tsao, senior policy counsel at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, agreed that state law cannot force changes at federally operated facilities like Broadview. He said the group is pushing Congress for more oversight of ICE operations, which the Republican-controlled body infused with a significant boost in cash to ramp up immigration enforcement, including building new detention centers. Some advocates want Broadview shut down altogether. 'The 'facilities' also use torture-based tactics to create an even more hostile environment inside for immigrants — from lights on all the time that don't let them sleep, lack of medical care, lack of mental health support from officers — to the point that individuals detained had to create networks of emotional support,' said Antonio Gutierrez, co-founder and current Strategic Coordinator for Organized Communities Against Deportations. Without oversight, federal agencies may get away with violating their own rules and with that the rights of immigrants, said Ramirez, who represents Illinois' 3rd Congressional District. In a speech on the House floor June 25, Ramirez noted the irony that ICE insisted the Broadview facility was a processing center, and not a detention center, so it didn't have to allow members of Congress inside. 'Let me be very clear. Just because something isn't named a detention facility doesn't mean this administration isn't going to use it as one,' she said at the time. 'If people are detained there, it is a detention facility, period.' For now, the families of detained loved ones endure — whether it is Chavez back in Honduras, thousands of miles away from her three children, or Lopez, who is only a couple of hundred of miles away from her three children, but still unable to see them. Even if Lopez's husband wanted to take the children to see their mother in detention, the trip would be too difficult, he said. The family lives in north suburban Lake County and Lopez is in Kentucky. Chavez said she is still trying to comprehend how she ended up detained, sleeping on the cold floor in Broadview, shackled and deprived of basic necessities. 'We prayed. Sometimes we braided each other's hair. We cried,' recalling her detention in Broadview and Kentucky, Chavez said. Her lawyer said they will continue to appeal her asylum case from Honduras.
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
Netflix's new crime thriller series looks like a mystery-laced revenge story — here's the first trailer
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Netflix just dropped the first trailer for 'Two Graves,' a new Spanish crime thriller series directed by Goya Award-winning filmmaker Kike Maíllo. The story follows a grandmother's frantic search for her missing granddaughter and her friend, who vanished mysteriously two years earlier. What starts as a quest for answers quickly spirals into a relentless pursuit of revenge. 'Two Graves' is set to premiere on Netflix on August 29, and judging by the trailer, it looks pretty brutal. The trailer introduces Isabel (Kiti Mánver), the grandmother of one of the missing girls, who, with nothing left to lose, takes justice into her own hands and launches an off-the-books investigation. We also meet Rafael (Álvaro Morte), the father of the other girl who went missing alongside Isabel's granddaughter. In the trailer, Isabel confronts him directly, accusing him of knowing more than he's letting on. He simply responds with: 'I owe my daughter this revenge.' This is a clear signal that the story will shift from a slow-burn mystery into full-blown revenge thriller territory. The rest of the footage is pretty brutal at times. Quick flashes show Isabel smashing someone's knee with a hammer in a desperate attempt to extract information, and another scene depicts someone being crushed under the weight of a car. It's gritty, violent, and clear that neither character is holding back anymore. 'Two Graves' on Netflix — what we know right now Along with the first trailer, we also got an official synopsis: 'Two years after the disappearance of Verónica and Marta, two 16-year-old friends, the investigation is declared closed due to lack of evidence and suspects. 'The grandmother of one of the two girls, Isabel, who has nothing to lose, decides to carry out an investigation beyond the law. Isabel will do whatever it takes to uncover the truth about what happened that night and what begins as the search for a culprit, soon becomes a story of revenge.' The rest of the cast includes Hovik Keuchkerian, Nadia Vilaplana, Joan Solé, Zoe Arnao, Nonna Cardoner, Carlos Scholz, and Salva Reina. 'Two Graves' was created by Agustín Martínez and helmed by director Kike Maíllo. With a track record of emotionally gripping and visually compelling movies, Maíllo's distinctive style will likely be instantly recognizable in this upcoming series. He first gained major recognition with 'Eva,' a sci-fi thriller that won him the Goya Award for Best New Director. His subsequent works, such as 'Toro' and 'A Perfect Enemy' show his versatility in crafting tension-filled narratives across genres. Martínez is a celebrated Spanish novelist and screenwriter, best known for crime dramas like 'Monteperdido.' When creating 'Two Graves,' he told Netflix: 'Two Graves is a revenge story led by a character rarely seen at the heart of fiction, someone who could only find her place on a platform like Netflix: a grandmother willing to do whatever it takes to seek justice for the loss of her granddaughter. 'A thriller full of emotion and unexpected twists, brought to life by Kiti Mánver, Álvaro Morte and Hovik Keuchkerian, characters I truly enjoyed writing.' Even though 'Two Graves' isn't officially labeled as a revenge thriller, the trailer definitely leans into that concept with its brutal scenes. Even the shot of Isabel casually wiping blood off her piano made me chuckle (in a good way). But what makes the series stand out isn't some lone, haunted antihero like John Wick. Instead, we get a grandmother and a father, both fiercely determined to seek justice… the bloody way. It's a refreshing twist to say the least. 'Two Graves' looks like it could be a gripping ride packed into just three episodes. If stories about grief turning into a violent reckoning are your kind of thrill, this crime thriller series belongs on your watchlist. You can stream 'Two Graves' on Netflix starting August 29. Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button. More from Tom's Guide All the new movies and shows on Netflix in August 2025 Netflix added a movie that's like 'Dead Poets Society' but with a penguin Netflix's new action-thriller series is a relentlessly gripping ride
USA Today
14 hours ago
- USA Today
Cavaliers pick Saliou Niang leads Italy to win over Iceland in EuroBasket exhibition
Cleveland Cavaliers draft pick Saliou Niang led Italy to a win over Iceland on Saturday in its first exhibition ahead of the 2025 EuroBasket Championship in Trento. Niang produced a game-high 17 points and six rebounds, Simone Fontecchio had 14 points and Gabriele Procida added 12 points in the 87-61 victory at Il T Quotidiano Arena. Niang finished by shooting 8-of-10 from the field in 17 minutes. Italy will play six preparation games before facing Greece to open the tournament on Aug. 28. In addition to Fontecchio, Niang and Procida, the group is also headlined by former NBA forward Nicolò Melli, who didn't play on Saturday (rest). Niang was the 58th pick in the 2025 NBA draft after averaging 7.9 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists on 51.3% shooting from the field last season with Dolomiti Energia Trento. He helped the team to the Italian Cup and was the Italian Lega A Most Improved Player. The Senegalese-Italian forward played with the Cavaliers in the NBA Summer League, averaging 7.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists on 41.2% shooting from the field in three games. He neared a double-double on July 13 with six points, 11 rebounds and three assists. Niang will play next season with Virtus Bologna after signing with the team on July 16. He will have the opportunity to continue his development and work toward joining the Cavaliers in the future.
