World number one Jannik Sinner is not setting any expectations for himself at this week's Italian Open as he makes his return from a three-month doping ban.
Sinner reluctantly accepted the suspension in February after the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed against a decision to clear him of blame over a banned steroid which, it had been accepted, had entered his body via a product used by his then physio during a massage.
That ban expired on Monday and Sinner will make his return on home soil at the Italian Open in Rome when it gets under way on Wednesday.
Despite his absence from competition since he won the Australian Open in January, Sinner still has a lead of close to 2,000 points at the top of the rankings and starts the week on an active 21-game winning streak.
However, the 23-year-old recognises there will be some rust to shake off this week.
"It’s a very, very low expectation tournament in general, talking results wise," Sinner said in his pre-tournament press conference as he waited to discover if he would face Mariano Navone or wild card Federico Cina in his opening match.
"For me, what’s missing is the complete feedback of where my level is. That’s going to come slowly with time. After the first-round match, I’m going to have a better picture of myself, where I am at."
His preparations for this tournament has shown him just how difficult it might be to get back into the rhythm he had before his ban.
"(They have been) very long months, but I was glad to share some great moments with my family, with my friends," said Sinner. "We were practising very hard, especially in the gym in the beginning, coming back to court again.
"It was good, but I could feel that I’m not playing for quite a long time. The body still has to adjust, the blisters in hands. They didn’t come again because you’re not used to it anymore, but all good, I’m just very happy, very curious to see where I am at."
Sinner said he had not wanted to accept the ban, but did so to avoid the uncertainty of putting his case before the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
"I didn’t want to do it in the beginning, so it was not easy for me to accept it because I know what really happened," he said.
"But sometimes we have to choose the best in a very bad moment and that’s what we did."
