"Novak Djokovic debated putting his name"- Tennis insider brings attention to why Serb wanted to refrain from PTPA's lawsuit

Tennis insider Jon Wertheim shared why Novak Djokovic wanted to keep his name out of the PTPA (Professional Tennis Players Association) case filing to avoid the limelight being taken away from the unified complaint raised by the players. The legendary Serbian co-founded PTPA that sued ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals), WTA (Women's Tennis Association), ITIA (International Tennis Integrity Agency) and ITF (International Tennis Federation) on Tuesday, owing to the restraining practices imposed on players.

The 24-time Grand Slam Champion co-founded the organization in 2019 along with Canadian tennis player Vasek Pospisil and has been striving to provide tennis players worldwide with an equal platform. The lawsuit claimed that the defendants (referring to the governing bodies) operate as a 'cartel' by implementing several 'draconian, interlocking anti-competitive restraints and abusive practices' on the players.

A report by The Athletic revealed through anonymous sources that even though Novak Djokovic is the face of the organization, he debated the decision of his name being put in the lawsuit as he did not want this issue to just be reduced to a 'direct battle' between two individuals. Wertheim posted an excerpt from the article on X, which read:

"Djokovic debated putting his name on the lawsuit. He declined, they say, to focus the action on tennis players as a collective, rather than a more direct battle between the greatest male tennis player of the modern era and the organizations that control his sport."

Tennis stars Nick Kyrgios, Vasek Pospisil and Sorana Cirstea are some of the people who have signed the lawsuit.

In the statement released by PTPA, they also revealed that they had tried to resolve the matter internally before, but the governing bodies had lacked cooperation.

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Novak Djokovic-led PTPA called out ATP and WTA for stonewalling players' compensation

Novak Djokovic's PTPA files historic lawsuit - Source: Getty

PTPA's Executive Director Ahmad Nassar revealed how ATP and WTA agencies did not compensate players who held key roles in advisory councils. He spoke to Ubitennis and highlighted how tennis professionals lacked support from the governing bodies while talking about the players' council. He said,

"They are illusions of having control. You don’t have control when you’re an advisor...what they do is incredible. So many of them take it so seriously and they don’t get paid a nickel for doing it, and it takes time out of their day and their practice schedule, but it is just fundamentally unfair."

Novak Djokovic notably served as the President of the ATP Player's Council from 2016 to 2020.