NEW YORK (US) – After resigning from his position as the president of the players council of the Association of Tennis Professionals, world number one Novak Djokovic has plans to form a new body to represent players, the New York Times said on Saturday.
Canadian Vasek Pospisil, a member of the Djokovic-led council, said he had also resigned. He wrote on twitter, “After two years on the ATP Player Council, I am resigning from my position as the player representative for the 51-100 ranking positions.”
“It has become clear that, as a player council member within the current structure of the ATP, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to have any significant impact on any major decisions made by our tour.”
The new body will be called the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA). A document explaining plans and objectives has been handed over to players, seeking their signatures.
“The goal of the PTPA is not to replace the ATP, but to provide players with a self-governance structure that is independent from the ATP and directly responsive to player-members’ needs and concerns,” as per the document.
Djokovic did not attend the post-match news conference, which according to organisers was because he “was not feeling well on court today and it worsened after the match”.
Representatives of Djokovic and Pospisil, however, did not respond to requests for comment.
The ATP did not respond to request for comment.
Milos Raonic, Canadian Tennis player, said a “majority” of players was expected to sign in favour of the new association.
“Players have had plenty of time to think and reflect and take a look at certain parts which they may not be happy with and discuss,” he said.
“I don’t know. A lot of us were kept in the dark by our leadership for six months. We were disappointed with many things.”
(Photos syndicated via Reuters)
This story has been edited by BH staff and is published from a syndicated field.