Absence from the US Open Call: Gilles Simon defends Novak Djokovic
Already during the Adriatic tour Novak Djokovic had to take some criticism for not participating in a zoom call with 400 players when it came to the way the US Open was held. An unjustified criticism, says Gilles Simon.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Jun 28, 2020, 04:01 pm
Novak Djokovic should have mixed feelings when he hears the name Gilles Simon. The Frenchman, known as one of the smartest minds on the tour, had involved Djokovic in a five-set thriller at the 2016 Australian Open, in which Djokovic made 100 mistakes without need - but ultimately won. Incidentally, the tournament at the very end. Djokovic should have good feelings when looking at the overall comparison, 11 wins with only 1 loss against Simon says the statistics here, and that was already twelve years ago.
However, not long ago, an action that Djokovic put in a bad light is already before the Adriatic scandal . When, after weeks of deliberation, the final round of a possible US Open in 2020, in which USTA and ATP conferred with 400 players via zoom, three well-known names were missing: those of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal - and Novak Djokovic . All three members on the player council, Djokovic even as president.
Due to the previous history, a questionable absence, many thought, it was Djokovic, after all, who protested the loudest against the proposed conditions in New York, especially the idea of only being able to have one supervisor suited the "Djoker" Not. (But now he shouldn't care, apparently three supervisors are now allowed on site.)
One of the biggest critics of the campaign: Noah Rubin , who runs the behindtheracquet.com website , where he lets professional colleagues have his say, and in a corresponding podcast. And this is exactly where Rubin had complained about Djokovic. It couldn't be that Djokovic didn't even have 30 seconds to join in a call where there were 400 players for the first time in tennis history. At the same time, you would have seen some photos of Djokovic playing football as part of the Adriatic tour.
"Djokovic has invested 1,500 hours"
These allegations would not be true, said Gilles Simon in an interview with tennisbreaknews.com . "Noah Rubin criticized him for not being part of the zoom call. But Djokovic had previously invested 1,500 hours on the phone, Rubin didn't know that. He criticized him for not being in the final conference, even though he was had discussed all topics in advance. "
Rubin has also partially distanced himself from his criticism - this was the only one related to Djokovic, it was about many top players who complained about having to do without their large team. And do not have in mind that it is simply a question of playing and income opportunities for players noted further down. Djokovic, he had to admit, had done more in the Council than others at the top, like Federer or Nadal.
Simon has many open questions
Djokovic is someone who tries a lot, to the displeasure of others, according to Simon. And that annoys the USTA, which organizes the tournament (the US Open). "You try to protect yourself with everyone, but when the world's number 1 says 'No, we don't play under these conditions', you are of course not happy."
In any case, there are still many open questions about the US Open. For example, what happens if a corona test is positive. "Do we have to stay at the hotel for 14 days? If there is a case, what happens? What if you are already in the third round, is there a wave of cancellations?" Everyone currently has their own interests. "The Americans say: We don't want to go to Europe. The others say: With us it's the other way round. In short, it's very tedious," said Simon.