"Do not need a union" - Stan Wawrinka rejects need of Novak Djokovic's PTPA; slams governing bodies for "unacceptable" decision-making process

Stan Wawrinka has voiced his dissent with Novak Djokovic's Professional Tennis Players' Association (PTPA) and similar unions that carry out decision-making processes for athletes without consulting them.

Wawrinka has always been keen on expressing concerns on the tour. The Swiss feels that players must be present at the table during the association's decision-making process.

Speaking to L'Equipe recently, Wawrinka questioned the efficacy of the Djokovic-led PTPA, which has "not launched anything concrete" since its inception.

"What did they do? Not much at the moment. I'm asking you. I don't know. For the moment, they have not launched anything concrete. So, it's not a subject," Wawrinka said.

He mentioned how "useless" the players' voice is, given the player councils never vote on decisions.

"We don't need a players' union, we need players on the decision-making tables. Does the player council vote on decisions? No, so the player advice is useless. There should also be players in the decision-making process. From the outside, you tell yourself that this is not normal! That means we don't work together. The argument was however to say that the players were for a change. This kind of wording doesn't mean anything," the Swiss continued.

The three-time Grand Slam champion mentioned how "unacceptable" it was of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) to have remained silent on an inquiry by the Swiss in February.

"I have asked for news since February, from my federation president, from the ITF, and nothing, nothing. They talk to each other, they will make their decisions and we will see. It is unacceptable," he said.

He opined players should have the power to influence if not the ability to make decisions.

"I'm not saying players should decide. It's not up to them to do it. But they must be part of the decisions, or the votes. Have representatives at discussion tables," he added.

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Novak Djokovic admits that the system is structured in a way to not allow players to have decision-making role

Novak Djokovic at the 2023 Davis Cup Final previews

Novak Djokovic stated the sport's system is structured in a way that does not allow players to have a decision-making role.

In a recent interview, the World No. 1 reflected on how the players end up in a worse position more than 90% of the time.

"Players get the shorter end of the stick 90 plus percent of the time. Why? Just because the system is structured and founded in such a way that doesn’t allow players to, you know, actually have a decision-making role," Djokovic stated.

Novak Djokovic founded the PTPA alongside Vasek Pospisil in 2019. The association represents the top 500 singles players and the top 200 doubles players from both the ATP and WTA tours.

The Serb most recently played at the 2023 ATP Finals. He defeated Jannik Sinner 6-3, 6-3 in the final to claim his seventh title at the year-end tournament on Sunday (November 19).