The professional tennis players’ union no longer has Novak Djokovic’s support. The record 24-time Grand Slam singles champion in the men’s draw announced on Sunday his departure from the organization. “After careful consideration, I have decided to step away completely from the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA),” Novak wrote online.
Novak and fellow men’s tennis player Vasek Pospisil founded that association in 2020. The Serbian says that the vision and current direction of the organization no longer aligns with his values and beliefs. Despite his exit from the association, Novak will continue playing tennis.
Novak has quit the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA)
A lack of transparency seems to be at the forefront of Novak’s decision to leave the PTPA. On his X post, Sunday, Novak stated concerns about that as well as governance within his organization. He added that he didn’t like the way his voice and image were being portrayed.
The PTPA advocates for a larger share of Grand Slam revenues to be allocated to prize money. That’s something that players in and out of the organization had been fighting for. For now, prize money for tennis players in Grand Slams is about 15-20%. That’s significantly lower than the NBA, Major League Baseball, and NFL, where those figures are close to 50%.
Last March, PTPA filed an antitrust lawsuit against the four Grand Slam tournaments. They also did that against the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Women’s Tennis Association tours. An agreement was reached between the PTPA and the Australian Open, while the other organizations are aiming to have the lawsuit dropped.
In the midst of the litigation, the PTPA has expressed a desire to advance reforms related to governance, transparency, and player rights. One of those not in support of the antitrust lawsuit is Carlos Alcaraz who was rumored to be dating Brooks Nader according to the latter’s sister.
As for Novak, he’ll continue playing, he says, focusing on contributing to the sport in ways that reflect his principles and integrity. He’s the only man in the history of tennis to be the reigning champion of all four major tournaments at once across three different surfaces.
TELL US – SHOULD GRAND SLAM CHAMPIONS BE ENTITLED TO MORE PRIZE MONEY THAN THEY CURRENTLY RECEIVE?
