Sinner has been chosen as the smartest player on the tour, while Kyrgios sarcastically remarked: "This is just ridiculous."

Sinner is undoubtedly one of the most talked-about players today. Last year, he kicked off a dream season, winning his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open and claiming the year-end championship. The Italian was unstoppable, securing eight titles and reaching the world number one spot, shining brightly. However, a doping scandal disrupted his world outside the court, and Kyrgios quickly became a "regular commentator" on social media. Even after the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) concluded the case, imposing a three-month suspension on Sinner, and despite his recent victory at Wimbledon, Kyrgios still did not let up on him.

Last Sunday, the Washington Open's social media shared a light-hearted video featuring players voting on "who is the smartest on the tour." Raducanu, Rublev, and Keys all expressed their opinions, but Sinner's name stood out. Players like Medvedev and Musetti cast their votes for him, with Musetti adding, "I don't need to explain why."

However, Kyrgios chose Ruud, stating, "I think he (Kasper) is very smart and has everything organized well." But when Sinner's name was mentioned, Kyrgios replied in the comments section: "It's ridiculous to say Sinner is the smartest." The tension between the two is far from over.

Since Sinner tested positive for a banned substance, the Australian has never let the topic go. He continuously expressed his dissatisfaction with how the case was handled on social media, often with sarcasm. Just last week, he took the opportunity to question why Sinner rehired a fitness coach previously involved in the case.

In March 2024, Sinner tested positive for clostebol during a drug test, but this news was not made public until August. At that time, Sinner explained that fitness coach Ferrara and physiotherapist Nardi had proactively explained the contamination process. According to the world number one, Ferrara had purchased an over-the-counter spray containing clostebol and handed it to Nardi for treating a finger injury. Unfortunately, Nardi later gave Sinner a massage, leading to accidental exposure to the banned substance. Subsequently, Sinner ended his collaboration with both team members.

However, just last week, Sinner announced the rehiring of Ferrara to join his team for the US Open preparations. Kyrgios immediately took to X (formerly Twitter) to mock: "He brought back that doctor again, folks, we’ve all been fooled, ladies and gentlemen." He added, "Unfortunately, this isn't @TennisCentel (note: TennisCentel is a satirical account for tennis news)." This is an account that satirizes tennis news. Even more, Kyrgios questioned Sinner’s Wimbledon victory from two weeks ago.

On July 13, Sinner staged a comeback against Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final, ending his opponent's winning streak, and clinched the title with a score of 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, igniting the passion of 15,000 spectators in the central court. For the Italian, it was a historic moment. However, Kyrgios appeared unimpressed, posting on X after the match: "Wimbledon is over, reply with one word to express our feelings:‍♂️," implying dissatisfaction with the result.

After Sinner defeated Djokovic to reach the final on July 10, Kyrgios's remarks became even sharper. He openly criticized Sinner and female player Iga Swiatek, stating that both had previously faced bans for doping, yet they both made it to the Wimbledon final. "Things have happened, decisions have been made, but if you ask me whether this represents the image of our sport—I don’t think so. I believe this is not good for tennis, and many might agree with me."

Swiatek, the Wimbledon women's singles champion, was banned for a month last fall due to mistakenly taking a melatonin product containing trimetazidine (a heart medication). Although her test results were deemed unintentional, Kyrgios continued to express his dissatisfaction. A few months ago, he harshly criticized these two high-profile doping cases as "disgusting" and questioned how tennis was handling the situation: "I just feel this is being handled terribly in our sport, with two world number ones banned for doping. This is a huge insult to our sport, and the image is extremely poor."

As for their performances, Sinner missed the Canadian Open, while Kyrgios played doubles in Washington but was eliminated in the first round. Both hope to make a fresh start in the upcoming tournaments, but the off-court turmoil is far from over. Will this controversy come to an end, or is it just beginning?(Source: Tennis House, Author: Spark)