Novak Djokovic ‘very much part of the process’ of PTPA lawsuit, claims co-founder
Novak Djokovic was “fully aware of and supportive” of the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) lawsuit against tennis’ governing bodies, according to co-founder Vasek Pospisil.
The Serbian co-founded the PTPA alongside former Canadian player Pospisil in 2020.
The lawsuit, which was launched in March, is against the ATP and WTA tours, the International Tennis Federation (ITF), and International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA).
The PTPA has labelled the governing bodies a “cartel” and accused them of implementing “anticompetitive restraints and abusive practices.”
The 163-page complaint was filed in the United States District Court in New York, where the PTPA is seeking a jury trial.
Pospisil and Nick Kyrgios are among 11 current or former professional players listed as plaintiffs (the original number was 12, but British player Jay Clarke has since withdrawn), while Djokovic chose not to be named.
During the Indian Wells Masters, Djokovic declared he did not agree with all aspects of the lawsuit and labelled some of the wording “quite strong.”
“I’ve never been a fan and supporter of division in our sport,” the 37-year-old tennis great told the media.
“I’ve always fought for better representation and influence of and positioning of the players globally in our sport, which I think is still not where I think it should be.
“Where most of the players think it should be, not just in terms of prize money, but in terms of many other points that have been also stated in that document.
“I really hope that all the governing bodies, including PTPA, will come together and solve these issues.
“This is a classic lawsuit, so lawyers to lawyers, type of situation. So to be quite frank with you, there are things that I agree with in the lawsuit, and then there are also things that I don’t agree with.
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“I found that maybe some wording was quite strong in there, but I guess the legal team knows what they are doing and what kind of terminology they’re supposed to use in order to get the right effect.”
Speaking on The Slice Tennis YouTube channel, Pospisil claimed Djokovic was heavily involved in the legal action.
“He was very much part of the process, staying updated and involved through his agent, with plenty of time before the lawsuit was filed,” said the Canadian.
“From my conversations with him, I believe his stance was that he didn’t want to make it about himself but rather about the broader group of players and the necessary changes in tennis.
“As a PTPA co-founder, he naturally played a role in the PTPA-led lawsuit, though he preferred to be involved from that angle vs as a direct plaintiff. He had his reasons for this choice, but there’s no doubt he was fully aware of and supportive of the lawsuit.”
Djokovic has explained one of the key purposes of the PTPA is to strive for fairer distribution of revenue and welfare in the sport.
“We talk so much about how much money the US Open winners make but we are not talking about how many players, both men and women, singles, doubles, all together, professionals live from this sport,” he said in 2023.
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