MELBOURNE — Being the dominant force in men's tennis, defending champion Jannik Sinner should be riding the crest of a wave as he prepares for the Australian Open, but instead, he returns to the scene of his maiden Grand Slam title under a cloud.

On the court, the 23-year-old Italian has opened a gap on his rivals, ending last year as the clear world No 1 after a remarkable season, in which he won eight titles and lost only six of the 79 matches he contested.

He capped 2024 with the ATP Finals title, and also led Italy to a successive Davis Cup crown.

Sinner gives the impression of a player with all the answers against whoever he comes up against, but the off-court questions he is likely to face about the doping case that surfaced in August might be harder to shrug off.

He was cleared of any wrongdoing after failing two drug tests in March — an independent tribunal convened by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepting that the anabolic agent clostebol had inadvertently entered his system via massages from a member of his support team.

Sinner, who has always maintained his innocence, was docked the 400 ranking points and prize money he earned for reaching the semifinals at Indian Wells, where the tests were carried out, but escaped a ban, raising eyebrows among some in the tennis community who cried double standards.

The World Anti-Doping Agency has since lodged an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport over the judgement, and, while Sinner focuses on trying to defend his title, he will do so knowing that his fate is yet to be decided and a damaging ban remains a possibility.

Australian player Nick Kyrgios, never one to hold back, says the Sinner scenario, together with a similar situation involving Poland's Iga Swiatek, has been a "horrific" look for the integrity of the sport.

Sinner will attempt to continue to let his racket do the talking, but with the world's glare on the year's first Grand Slam, the saga is unlikely to fade into the background.

The two-time Grand Slam champion spent Christmas in the snow of northern Italy, conceding it was a tough time after the death of his aunt at the end of last year.

He has quickly warmed to the task of defending his Australian Open title since landing in Melbourne though, looking sharp in an exhibition match win over Australian Alexei Popyrin at Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday.

"Coming back here as the reigning champion feels good, it's a different sensation, but I'm genuinely looking forward to it. Let's see how I can perform," Sinner said after that win.

"In my mind, I know how much work we have put in, which hopefully will give me confidence. We will see how it goes."

Sinner displayed commendable resilience to put aside his off-court distractions to win the US Open last year and end the season in a rich vein of form.

He will need the same laser-like focus if he is to see off the many challenges he will face in Melbourne.

Final frontier

With Grand Slam success on all three surfaces, there is little doubt Carlos Alcaraz is one of the brightest stars of his generation, but the Spaniard will arrive at the Australian Open looking to conquer the final frontier of his young career.

Should he lift the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup at Melbourne Park later this month, the 21-year-old French Open and Wimbledon champion will become the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam — the feat of winning all four major titles.

Victory would put the 2022 US Open champion in the elite company of Fred Perry, Don Budge, Rod Laver, Roy Emerson, Andre Agassi, Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic, cementing his status as a modern great.

Alcaraz has not gone beyond the quarterfinals in his three previous visits to Melbourne, but that has not stopped the world No 3 from dreaming of glory at this month's event.

"I have it in mind to get a tattoo of a kangaroo," Alcaraz told Spanish outlet Marca recently, referring to the tradition of immortalizing his major triumphs on his skin.

"The goal is to complete the Grand Slam in Melbourne."

For all his bullishness before the first Grand Slam of the new year, Alcaraz will be aware he was somewhat overshadowed by Sinner in 2024, with the Italian enjoying a near-perfect season that included the Australian Open and US Open titles.

Defeat by Novak Djokovic in the Olympic final in Paris was another sobering experience for Alcaraz, and some pundits began to question his consistency after a shock second round loss to the unheralded Botic van de Zandschulp at the US Open.

"Every player wants to be in the final, to go as far as they can during tournaments. This year, I've played great tournaments and really bad tournaments," said Alcaraz, who responded to his critics by winning the China Open, beating Sinner in the final.

"My goal at the end is to be there all the time, to at least reach the semifinals and final and give myself the chance to win tournaments.

"I have to work. I'm still super young, so I have, or I hope to have, many years to get there.

"Let's see in 2025, I hope to be a better player and (show) more consistency."

Federer, who watched Alcaraz live for the first time during his triumphant Wimbledon defense shortly after his Roland Garros victory, believes the Spaniard has what it takes to capture the one major title that has eluded him so far.

"He will win an Australian Open, the question is when," said Federer.

"He's had the most incredible career already. It's fantastic that he's already got four Grand Slams without talking about all the other stuff that he's achieved. Fantastic effort."

Reuters