Novak Djokovic ‘debated’ putting his name on PTPA’s shocking lawsuit against tennis’ governing bodies
Novak Djokovic-backed PTPA took legal action against ATP, WTA, ITF, and the ITIA, alleging corruption and manipulation.
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Novak Djokovic (Image via X/ The Tennis Letter)
The Professional Tennis Players’ Association (PTPA) shook the tennis world by filing a lawsuit against the three tennis governing bodies, and the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA). They stated that they were forced to take this action after failing to solve the various problems the players have been facing due to the governing bodies’ certain rules and regulations.
Along with the PTPA, Nick Kyrgios, Vasek Pospisil, Reilly Opelka, Anastasia Rodionova, Nicole Melichar-Martinez, Saisai Zheng, Sorana Cirstea, Varvara Gracheva, John-Patrick Smith, Tennys Sandgren, Noah Rubin, and Aldila Sutjiadi filed the lawsuit the United States District Court in New York on Tuesday (March 18). The PTPA was founded by Novak Djokovic along with Pospisil.
According to a report by The Athletic, Djokovic was unsure whether to put his name on the lawsuit. There were concerns that his name in the lawsuit would be considered a legal battle between him and the governing bodies.
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.
An excerpt from The Athletic read
The PTPA alleged that the tennis bodies have exploited the players through draconian practices, criticizing the schedule, ranking system, and their control over the players’ image rights. They claimed that players don’t get enough from the revenue generated from tournaments, especially the Major events. The players union also has accused the ITIA of interfering with players’ privacy.
Andy Roddick not worried about Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic’s search for his first ATP title since the 2023 ATP Finals continues. He started the 2025 season at the Brisbane International with an aim of getting his 100th tour-level title. Djokovic, however, is yet to advance to a tour-level final.
His best came at the Australian Open where the Serb reached the semifinal but his hamstring injury forced him to throw in the towel during his match against Alexander Zverev. He then suffered two back-to-back defeats in his opening rounds of the Qatar Open and Indian Wells against Matteo Berrettini and Botic van de Zandschulp, respectively.
He has reached the twilight of his career and is struggling to win matches due to injury issues. Andy Roddick, however, is not concerned about him.
I am not worried about Novak at all. I think you give him a quick surface and he’s fine. A couple of first-round losses in a row, with a tear in Australia, I didn’t think we would honestly see him until Monte Carlo anyway. I was stunned. Are you worried at all? Or when we get into the Slams…is this a different thing?
Andy Roddick said on his Served with Andy Roddick podcast
The 2023 season was a far cry from his 2024 season. He was a champion in three Grand Slam events but he won just the gold medal at the Paris Olympics last year. Twice he reached the finals in ATP events, at Wimbledon and Shanghai Masters, losing to Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, respectively.
Novak Djokovic to play Miami Open next
Novak Djokovic, who last won a Grand Slam title at the 2023 US Open, will aim for his first title of the season at the Miami Open next. The tournament, which Nole skipped last year, is underway at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, where Djokovic lifted the title a record six times.
The 37-year-old will be participating in the second ATP Masters 1000 of the season for the first time since 2019. He last clinched the title in 2016. The 24-time Grand Slam champion will kick start his campaign against the winner of the first-round match between Rinky Hijikata and Hamad Medjedovic.
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