CNN
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Tennis star Jannik Sinner revealed he considered walking away from the sport over his recent doping suspension.

The world No. 1 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 an interview with Italian state broadcaster RAI, Sinner was asked whether he thought about stepping away from tennis at any time during the ordeal, to which he said he had.

“I remember before the Australian Open this year, it wasn’t a very happy time,” the 23-year-old said. “I didn’t really feel comfortable in the locker room, where we were eating. Players were looking at me differently. I said to myself: ‘Maybe, I need to take some time off after Australia.’ I didn’t want (the ban) though.

“I had a tough time accepting these three months. Because I knew that I didn’t do anything wrong. So why do I have to pay this price? But then we discussed it with my lawyer and about what could have happened in the worst-case scenario and so we decided to accept it.”

The saga around Sinner has shone a 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. He also won the U.S.
Open and Australian Open while waiting for a verdict on his suspension.

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. Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic said that the whole case was “not a good image for our sport.”

But as he prepares to return to action, the Italian says he’s focusing on his preparations before he steps back into competitive action.

“I don’t even want to answer. Everyone is free to say what they want, everyone can judge, but that’s okay,” Sinner said. “It’s important to me that I know how that happened, but above all also of what I went through and it was very difficult.

“I don’t wish it on anyone to really pass as innocent something like that because it wasn’t easy, but we are in a world where everyone can say what they want, so it’s okay.”

CNN
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Rudy Gobert recorded two playoff career-highs to lift the Minnesota Timberwolves past the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 and advance to the NBA Western Conference Semifinals.

Gobert – who had career postseason marks in scoring and rebounding – and the Timberwolves won 103-96 to clinch the first round series 4-1; it was their third straight win over the Lakers and means the Wolves have now won a playoff series in back-to-back seasons for the first time in franchise history.

Minnesota left the door open throughout the game as the team struggled to make its shots, but the Lakers failed to take advantage.

“We didn’t shoot the ball well, but I thought we were the tougher team mentally and physically,” T-Wolves head coach Chris Finch reflected in the post-game press conference.

Gobert put in a herculean effort to help push the Wolves into the second round with his best game of the postseason. The French center notched a team-high 27 points, game-high 24 rebounds and two blocks on the night.

The performance may have taken some by surprise as Gobert hadn’t registered more than six points in any of the previous four games of the series. Finch discussed the criticism Gobert’s received and the team’s reaction to his performance after the win.

“Rudy’s a winner at the highest level. He drives winning. You can not like who he is, how he does it, what he looks like, etc. I mean when you have this guy on your team you understand what a professional and a winner is.

“He doesn’t listen to the outside noise. We don’t listen to the outside noise. And no one’s happier for Rudy than his teammates right now. Particularly, Anthony (Edwards) let everybody out there on the floor know it was Rudy’s night, and nobody was around to stop him.”

Star shooting guard Edwards had a relatively quiet night for his standards, recording 15 points on 5-of-19 shooting, 11 rebounds, eight assists and three steals. He was effusive in interviews about what it meant moving on in the playoffs against LeBron James and the Lakers: “It means a lot. I mean, we beat the best player in the world, the best player ever.”

James, who recorded 22 points on the night, was solemn after the loss.

“For me, since my first NBA Finals appearance, I think in 2007, the moment I got an opportunity to be a part of that and taste that feeling, from there on, every season that I did not make it to the Finals or did not make it to a championship has been a disappointment,” he said.

At 40 years old, James is the oldest active player in the NBA. The four-time NBA champion was uncertain about his future when asked post-game.

“I don’t know. I don’t have the answer to that,” James responded. “Something I’ll sit down with my family, my wife and my support group and kind of just talk through it and see what happens and just have a conversation with myself on how long I want to continue to play. I don’t know the answer to that right now, to be honest, so we’ll see.”

While the Lakers’ abrupt exit means decision time for James and Co., Minnesota will next face the winner of the Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors series. The Warriors currently lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 and will advance if they win at home on Friday night in Game 6.

CNN
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Transgender women will be barred from playing in women’s soccer in England from June 1, the English Football Association (FA) announced on Thursday.

“We understand that this will be difficult for people who simply want to play the game they love in the gender by which they identify, and we are contacting the registered transgender women currently playing to explain the changes and how they can continue to stay involved in the game,” the organizing body for soccer in Britain said in a statement.

The FA clarified to CNN Sports that this ban will impact all levels of women’s soccer, from the professional game to the grassroots level.

CNN understands that there are around 20 transgender women who could be affected by this ruling, all playing in the amateur levels of the game.

The decision comes after the UK’s Supreme Court ruled last month that the legal definition of “woman” excludes trans women in a case that is expected to impact accommodations for trans women in bathrooms, hospital wards, sports clubs and more.

Britain’s highest court ruled unanimously that the definition of a woman in equality legislation refers to “a biological woman and biological sex,” sparking celebrations outside court among gender-critical campaigners but warnings it was a “worrying” development for transgender people.

Just days before the April 16 ruling from the UK’s Supreme Court, the FA had updated its policy on transgender women playing in women’s soccer to allow trans women who had kept their testosterone levels below 5.0 nanomoles per liter of blood for 12 months prior to a match and thereafter to continue to participate.

In Thursday’s statement, the FA said that its previous policy, which allowed trans women to play in the women’s game, was based on the principle of making “football accessible to as many people as possible” and “supported by expert legal advice,” as well as falling in the laws outlined by UEFA and FIFA, the governing bodies for European and global soccer respectively.

CNN has reached out to FIFA, UEFA and LGBTQ activist group Athlete Ally for comment.

“This is a complex subject, and our position has always been that if there was a material change in law, science, or the operation of the policy in grassroots football then we would review it and change it if necessary,” the FA said.

The FA’s announcement comes days after its Scottish counterpart did similar in banning transgender women from playing soccer from the start of next season.

When contacted by CNN, LGBTQ activist group Stonewall called the FA’s and Scottish FA’s decisions “incredibly disappointing,” referencing their previous support for the Rainbow Laces campaign, aimed at increasing inclusivity in soccer.

“The (decision) … has been made too soon, before the implications of the Supreme Court’s ruling has been worked through by lawyers and politicians or become law,” a Stonewall spokesperson said.

“Trans women young and old who love football will be deeply distressed that they are no longer able to take part in games, at all levels. Trans people remain protected under the law and need to be treated with dignity and respect – and this announcement lacks any detail on how those obligations will be honoured.

“Hasty decisions, without a full understanding of the practical implications and before any changes to guidance have gone through the necessary consultation and parliamentary process, isn’t the answer.”