Their support proved valuable for Sinner, who addressed the doping saga again after lifting the US Open trophy. Asked how he left it behind while on the courts, the 23-year-old replied: “What allowed me to do that was it was always the people who are close to me daily, people who know me already from when I was very young, and also my family and my team and everyone who supports me daily.

“You know, I always try to stick together with them, especially when the moments are getting difficult and tough, because I know that they can help me in these moments.

“It was and it's still a little bit in my mind. It's not that it's gone, but when I'm on court, I try to focus about the game, I try to handle the situation the best possible way, communication with the team, in practice courts.”