Andy Roddick's Served podcast threatened with defamation lawsuit by PTPA with freshly surfaced letter

Andy Roddick's Served podcast could be in a spot of bother with a bit of legal troubles possibly on the horizon. The Professional Tennis Players' Association (PTPA) have threatened a defamation lawsuit in a letter that has only just come to the surface.

According to Daniel Kaplan, the PTPA are ready to take the next steps, and have done so by hiring Clare Locke, a top defamation law firm with a firm reputation against the media, to send the correspondence to the podcast.

The letter, dated back to January 7, PTPA co-founder Novak Djokovic left the organisation because of the questions Served’s freelance reporter, Tim Rohan, was asking him. They were not to his fondness as he was quizzed about the allegations of double-dealing and that the FBI was investigating the PTPA and its financial backer, Winners Alliance.

Elizabeth Locke wrote in a letter to the podcast's attorney. "Mr. Rohan has caused my clients irreparable damage by spreading false and defamatory claims that (executive director) Mr. (Ahmad) Nassar, PTPA, and Winners Alliance are engaged in misconduct during his reporting. These false claims directly caused Novak Djokovic's abrupt and highly damaging departure from PTPA.

"Served's continued refusal to provide a meaningful opportunity to comment on the factual allegations that will be included in any eventual story will cause even greater damage to my clients and is evidence of Served's actual malice."

These double-dealing accusations have been focused on Ahmad Nassar. This was due to his roles at the PTPA and Winners Alliance. Nassar has since stepped down as executive director of PTPA in March.

Wajid Syed Mir, the former PTPA general counsel, has utilised the letter while being the defendant in a federal court case. He had been previously sued by the PTPA and Winners Alliance.

The PTPA was founded by 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil all the way back in 2019. It was put in place for players to have more of a say over the ATP and WTA, clapping back at anything they did not agree with. It is structured fairly with players and management having 50% of the organisation each.

The PTPA never could establish itself as a legitimate partner with the other organisations. As the tensions in tennis continue to rise including factors over prize money, the PTPA in turn launched an antitrust lawsuit against the governing bodies in tennis.

Djokovic, one of the leading voices in the sport, was visibly missing and eventually stepped away from his role at the beginning of this year, creating headlines. He released a statement at the time explaining his reasonings. "After careful consideration, I have decided to step away completely from the Professional Tennis Players Association. This decision comes after ongoing concerns regarding transparency, governance, and the way my voice and image have been represented."

Three days after the statement, Claire Locke had already sent a letter to Roddick's Served podcast demanding that it would not eradicate any material on this specific topic. "Any claim or suggestion that Winners Alliance and PTPA have a conflict of interest or are being targeted by the FBI or DOJ in any investigation is false and defamatory," she wrote.

She pleaded to Roddick with demands that asked for equal treatment in its coverage, identifying any negative aspects of a story before reporting while providing documents on that, and to stop falling back on unnamed sources.

“Ignoring the concerns we have identified and failing to offer a meaningful opportunity to comment will be evidence that Served is acting in accordance with a preconceived narrative and with reckless disregard for the truth.”