Djokovic opens the door of his association to female players: “It's not just for men”

Novak Djokovic has so much left in this US Open, that apart from going over each of his rivals, he also has time to continue with the efforts of his new players association, the Professional Players Tennis Association (PTPA)., with the help of Canadian Vasek Pospisil, who is also still alive in the box and plays this Saturday against Roberto Bautista. In other things, the leaders of this project that was born outside the ATP They talk these days to include the WTA players, one of the aspects that had been questioned when the creation of the PTPA was known. This was confirmed by the Serbian in the press conference after his victory against the German Struff on Friday in the third round.

“Right now we are prioritizing bringing together as many players as possible, both men and women, because there has been a lot of talk about it being a men-only organization or association, and it's not true. We have been talking to the players for the last five or six days, trying to share as much information as possible with them and hopefully get their support and get them involved a lot as part of this partnership as well, “explained Nole, who clarified that the covers actually started a long time ago and that they caused a 'no' response from the Grand Slams. “I spoke with Serena about three days ago. Also with Sloane. Vasek has spoken to her. In fact, the two of them last year, before the US Open, brought together around 70% of the top-100 singles, both men and women, to collect their signatures and approval to be legal and put in the hands of a law firm. Canada's negotiations with the Grand Slams about an increase in prize money and other things. The firm sent a letter to the USTA and other governing bodies that govern the Grand Slams, but there was no response from all of them. The response we got from some was negative, it was negative. They did not agree to sit at the table and argue with the players, both ATP and WTA about it. “

That is why, Djokovic argues, they decided to form the PTPA. “This year we met again, but this time we wanted to do it in a different way so that we could have more credibility, legitimately have an organization and association that hopefully, in the future I can count on the respect in the ecosystem by all the governing bodies and be able to have and fight for a place on the table in decision-making, the most important decisions of our sport. “Novak warns that support for the association is not yet majority and firm in the circuit. “It's a process. It's going to take time. We also don't have most of the players in the top 500 singles or in the top 200 doubles at the moment. We are gradually increasing support. Our priority is to increase these numbers as much as we can. We have patience. We are not rushing. “And he reiterates that this is not a war:” We are not going against the ATP. We don't want to close ourselves to anyone. We are not a conflict organization. We feel that we are legally allowed to coexist in the first place and that we should coexist with everyone else. I think this only adds value to the players and only to the entire tennis ecosystem. “