Sacramento-area tennis star Jenson Brooksby facing yearlong suspension; denies wrongdoing
Once-rising Sacramento-area tennis player Jenson Brooksby could be facing a prolonged absence from the tour.
Brooksby on Wednesday accepted a provisional yearlong suspension from the International Tennis Integrity Agency. He has been accused of missing three performance-enhancing drug tests over a 12-month span, but he denies doping.
“Taking the provisional suspension is the best decision that we have to make right now,” Brooksby told the Associated Press. “I’ve never failed a drug test. I’ve never taken any bad substances.”
Brooksby posted a longer statement on Instagram, saying, “The provisional suspension is not an admission that I have done anything wrong; to the contrary, I have denied this charge and am waiting for an arbitration with an independent tribunal.”
Brooksby hasn’t played a professional tennis match six months due to a string of wrist injuries to both arms that required surgery. The 22-year-old was named the ATP Tour’s Newcomer of the Year in 2021, becoming the the third American to win the award since 2000, joining Taylor Fritz in 2016 and former U.S. Open champion Andy Roddick. Brooksby was ranked as high as No. 33 in the world and made it to the fourth round of the U.S. Open in 2021.
Brooksby has also reportedly left his long-time coach, Joe Gilbert, who runs JGM Tennis Academy in Arden Arcade. Brooksby has made over $1.7 million in career prize money.
“This year has been filled with tremendous adversity and I am looking forward to putting all this behind me and getting back on tour,” Brooksby wrote in his statement.
This story was originally published July 5, 2023 at 7:27 PM.
