Novak Djokovic has come out in support of the number of tennis players who struggle to make ends meet. He has lashed out at the way the sport is being run and has vowed to bring about radical changes. The 24-time Grand Slam winner has always been vociferous in helping out lower-ranked players, and he has called out the association to take notice of this pathetic state.
Reminiscing about his young days as a tennis player Novak said, “I was in their shoes, I understand the struggle.” He further went on to add that, the difficulties of bearing the costs without the backing of a proper federation could be pretty tough on the players. A living testimony to that fact is himself, as coming from Serbia, he didn’t have many facilities to back him.
Novak Djokovic says it’s a ‘failure for our sport’ that less than 400 players can make a living:
“I was in their shoes, I understand the struggle. I understand the difficulties of paying the costs for travel if you don’t have the backing of a strong federation, which 90% or even… pic.twitter.com/2EG4JIk49c
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) September 23, 2023
He continued his scathing attack by ripping into the tennis bosses for this situation, stating “And now I have influence, I have power, and I want to fight for better conditions”. The US Open champion was particularly skeptical of so much talk on how much money Grand Slam winners make, while the care given to the number of players who live out of this sport is minimal.
Novak Djokovic and Ons Jabeur share their views on struggles of players
Novak Djokoic as he is fondly called, has been a constant in taking the lead to fight for players’ security. This was right from the days when he was the President of the ATP player council.
In 2020, he parted ways with the council and co-founded the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) along with Vasek Pospisil. Headquartered in Canada, it aims to protect the rights and interests of the players.
The Executive Committee of PTPA has four representatives each, from ATP and WTA. Ons Jabeur is among them and has emphasized its importance stating “Before, if I talked, nobody would listen because I wasn’t in the top 10 & I wasn’t a top player, but now they listen. Now they would care about my opinion.” She has vowed to voice the underrepresented’s issues and resolve them.
Djokovic has also voiced his perspectives on the amount of money earned from betting and the intricacies concerned with it. He opined that the tournaments sign hefty sponsorship deals with betting companies, while players are not allowed to do so. Saying that the players deserve to earn more, he termed it “totally unacceptable” and is against the spirit of the game.
.@DjokerNole explains this well. While a percentage of sports betting and player data profits goes to players’ pension program, most players will wait 1-2 decades to see this money. pic.twitter.com/BGz8i4OgKa
— Professional Tennis Players Association (@ptpaplayers) September 22, 2023
Djokovic has a valid point when he says, “It’s less than 400 players max for a sport that is super global and then it’s one of the most-watched sports on the planet. That’s poor. That’s a failure for our sport”.
Though there could be stern opposition from the governing bodies, it looks like Novak is in no mood to relent and take the fight for fair play till the very end.