ATP players' council: Novak Djokovic takes himself from the list of nominees
Novak Djokovic has stated that he will not return to the players' council.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Dec 22, 2020, 10:24 am
Djokovic wrote that on Monday evening via Twitter. He thanks for the nomination, his first reaction was to accept it. And, should he be chosen to do his best to protect the interests of the players within the ATP.
A few days after his nomination, however, the ATP put a new rule into force that members of other associations - such as the PTPA founded by Djokovic - could not be elected to the Player's Council due to conflicts of interest. Because of this, he will be removed from the list of nominees.
The PTPA's direction still seems unclear
In the run-up to the US Open, Djokovic announced the founding of the PTPA, the Professional Tennis Players Association , which around 60 colleagues have joined. What exactly the PTPA wants to stand for remains unclear, as Djokovic himself explained in his message. "The PTPA still needs to be structured with a strategy and long-term goals." She does not want to be in a dispute with the ATP, but it is unclear how the ATP would view her in the future.
Djokovic is looking for the way forward
It is difficult for him to renounce membership in the ATP Player's Council, "because I have always been and still am very passionate about representing my colleagues in the council," said Djokovic in his message. "I really believe that there is a way forward that can improve the lives of a lot of players, especially the less placed." He is confident that the PTPA will achieve this in the future. He thinks it is extremely important not to have a conflict of interest.
Djokovic was a member and President of the ATP Players' Council until recently, and Kevin Anderson has been President since October 12th.
Djokovic's colleague Vasek Pospisil also announced shortly after Djokovic's tweet that he would not stand again for the ATP Player's Council.