French tennis veteran Richard Gasquet has launched a verbal attack against the governing body of men’s tennis over both their management of the current COVID-19 pandemic and their policies.
The 34-year-old former Grand Slam semi-finalist ripped into the ATP during a recent interview with sports newspaper L’Equipe earlier this week. In it he accused the organisation of being ‘overwhelmed’ by the pandemic and lacking transparency. All competitive tennis tournaments have been cancelled since March due to the Virus with officials aiming to restart the Tour next month.
“The ATP is a catastrophe,” Gasquet told L’Equipe. “They don’t say anything to the players. They are simply overwhelmed. Nothing is said in Zoom conferences, so I do not attend.”
In recent weeks some players have expressed concerns about returning to action and travelling to America. A country which has recently seen an increase in COVID-19 cases in some parts. For the first time in history the US Open will be held behind closed doors and players will be essentially kept in what is being described as a ‘bubble.’ Although there is still a lack of clarity about quarantine measures when travelling between America and Europe.
The final decision about the US Open will be made by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) and not the ATP. Tennis is made up of seven governing bodies and each Grand Slam has their own. Gasquet, who says he no longer listens to the ATP, has also hit out at those tennis federations which includes the one in his own country. Branding them as ‘puppets.’
“It is the authorities who decide,” Gasquet stated. “But neither Bernard Giudicelli (the president of the FFT) nor the president of the USTA are decision-makers. The federations are puppets.”
“You go to the hotel, you stay in your room, someone has a meal for you, and you go out to play. There just have to be a lot of regulations,“ he added about the US Open.
The route of Gasquet’s frustration is the unanswered questions he and others on the Tour are facing concerning its resumption. Due to the pandemic, the US Open and French Open will take place within seven weeks as well as two clay-court Masters 1000 events. Something the former top 10 player has described as ‘completely crazy’ during another interview with Le Parisien three weeks ago.
“I said from the start that tennis was going to be the sport most affected by this kind of pandemic,” said Gasquet. “It is confirmed. Here we are in a total blur. Nothing is known about possible quarantines upon return from the USA. And planes? At the moment you cannot book flights. Nobody knows anything.”
Besides the pandemic, a straightforward-speaking Gasquet also heavily criticised some other aspects of the sport. Making a jibe at the rules currently in place on the ATP Tour before coming out in support of shortening matches. Saying he can no longer watch long duels involving the likes of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. According to the ATP, Gasquet has played 24 five-set matches in his career but has won only 11 of them.
“With the ATP you can do nothing. You open your mouth a little, you say something bad, it’s a $3,000 fine. Your coach whispers something, you get punished. It’s unbearable,” he fumes.
“I can’t even watch Roland Garros anymore. I can’t watch four or five sets of tennis, even for a Federer-Nadal match. We are the only sport where you play more than four hours…. There are some things to think about to shorten playing time.”
Gasquet has been ranked as high as seventh in the world rankings and has won 15 ATP titles. So far in his career, he has made more than $18 million in prize money.
note: translation of quotes obtained via Tennis Majors
