"Doesn't allow players to actually have a decision making role": Novak Djokovic believes tennis structure is flawed

Monday, 16 October 2023 at 14:17

Novak Djokovic continues to press home the need for organisations like the PTPA with talks upcoming towards a merger between ATP and WTA.

Djokovic said that as a tennis player, the tennis system is flawed and doesn't allow players to have a true say and a decision-making role within the sport despite the governance seeing the Player Councils on either side to run the sport.

But speaking from experience of being on the Player Council and president for six or seven years, he believes it doesn't allow the players that right.

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"Players get the shorter end of the stick 90 plus percent of the time. Why? Just because the system is structured and founded in such a way that doesn’t allow players to, you know, actually have a decision-making role," the Serb said.

"The fact that I mean both in ATP and WTA governance, you have 50 percent of ATP and WTA belongs to players and 50 percent to tournaments. And in most of the cases, you’re always going to have a conflict of interest," he continued.

"If you actually go to the very structure and the system that is in place, I was part of the council and president of the council for six or seven years, so I understand how things work."

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The current structure of tennis does not allow players to truly participate in the decision making process. @DjokerNole explains why this is and why the PTPA needs to exist to combat this reality.

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7:04 PM · Oct 15, 2023

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