Kevin Anderson Hits Back At Djokovic's Player Association Over Claims Of A Lack Of Transparency On Tour - UBITENNIS
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Kevin Anderson Hits Back At Djokovic’s Player Association Over Claims Of A Lack Of Transparency On Tour

Anderson, who is a member of the ATP Council, addresses the concerns which have been made by some of his peers following his opening win at Wimbledon.

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Former Wimbledon Finalist Kevin Anderson says recent allegations made against the governing body of men’s tennis are ‘a little unfair’ as he explains his stance concerning the sharing of information among players.

The Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) issued a statement criticising the ATP Tour for what they claim is a lack of transparency concerning their 30-year strategic plan. The organisation, which was co-founded by Novak Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil, argues that players need to know how the plan will impact them before a vote on it is made.

“With our mission in mind, we have repeatedly asked the ATP to delay the vote on their 30-year plan until the players understand how it will impact their health, wellness rights (digital and/or otherwise) and their ability to make fair wages,” the PTPA said in a statement.

Overseen by ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi, the aim of the plan is set to increase the Tour’s revenue by grouping digital rights. Should it get given the green light it will come into effect from 2023. Players are said to benefit through increased prize money, 50-50 profit sharing and ‘full transparency’ of audited tournament financials.

Anderson is a member of the ATP Players Council, who previously urged their peers not to join the PTPA due to a lack of clarity over their objectives. Addressing those concerns about transparency, the South African argues that the concept of sharing comprehensive information of the Tour ‘wouldn’t work’ due to confidentiality reasons.

“I think it’s a very tricky balance because if you look at every organisation around the world representatives try to make the best informed decision for a wider group of people,” he said following his first round win at Wimbledon.
“You can’t have certain information spread amongst the whole group of players. I mean, it just wouldn’t work.’
“Tennis, in terms of confidential and private information, nothing seems to stay that way. So that is a reason why some information is just sensitive. You can’t necessarily share that with a wider group of players.”

The 35-year-old is one of 10 players currently sitting on the council along with the likes of Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Their role is to represent the views of players which then influences the ATP board when it comes to decision making. Although they are more of an advisory panel.

“As far as I’m concerned with being in the council, all of us are putting the time in to represent the players to the best of our abilities,” said Anderson.
“We’ve spoken a lot about communication. There’s a lot of people on the Tour that are always welcome to talk and explain as much as they possibly can to players.”

As for the viability of the PTPA, Djokovic has previously claimed that out of 500 players at least 75% are backing them. The 500 is made up of the top 350 singles players and the top 150 in the doubles from the men’s Tour. Although the names of those individuals have not been disclosed. Regarding the ATP’s future plan, John Isner, Reiley Opelka and Tennys Sandgren have all said there are unanswered questions.

“I think it is a little unfair to say there is a lack of transparency,” Anderson weighs in on the argument. “There’s certain information which is private and different people will view that differently. I think it’s important that players reach out themselves.’
“Communication is important, I’m the first to acknowledge that but I feel it goes both ways.”

At Wimbledon Anderson will play Djokovic in the second round. He trails their head-to-head 2-9.

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Daniil Medvedev Targets French Open Breakthrough After Rome Disappointment

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Credit Francesca Micheli/Ubitennis

Daniil Medvedev believes there will be more title contenders at the French Open than previous editions with the Russian hoping to be one of them. 

The world No.4 heads into the Grand Slam after what has been a mixed clay swing. Medvedev suffered a third round defeat in Monte Carlo before bouncing back in Madrid where he reached the quarter-finals before retiring from his match with a minor injury. Meanwhile, at this week’s Italian Open, his title defence came to an end in the fourth round on Tuesday when he fell 6-1, 6-4, to Tommy Paul. 

“Mentally I had to be much better,” Medvedev said of his latest performance.
“I started to calm myself down and focus on the match only at the end of the match, and it was too late. I had to do better. I was expecting myself to play better.’
“It’s disappointing, but that’s how sport is. You lose and you go for the next tournament, which is a pretty important one.” He added. 

28-year-old Medvedev recently stated that he is seeing improvements in his game when it comes to playing on the clay. A surface which he has struggled on during stages of his career. Out of the 38 ATP Finals he has contested, only two of those were on the clay. Barcelona in 2019 when he finished runner-up and Rome last year which he won. 

As for the French Open, he has lost in the first round on five out of seven appearances. But did reach the quarter-finals in 2021 and the last 16 the following year. So could 2024 be his year?

“Now it’s maybe a little bit more open than it was ever before,” he said of this year’s event. 
“Good for me, too, because usually in Roland Garros I don’t play that well. The more open it is, the better it is for me.”

All of the top three players on the men’s tour are currently experiencing problems. Novak Djokovic crashed out of the Italian Open and recently underwent a medical assessment after getting hit in the head by a bottle in a freak accident. Jannik Sinner is reportedly on the verge of withdrawing from the French Open due to a hip issue and Carlos Alcaraz has been hindered by a forearm injury in recent weeks. 

“I’m feeling much better on clay,” Medvedev commented. “What is tough for me on clay sometimes is getting used to conditions. Every court – in every tournament in the world – is a bit different.
“On hard courts it’s the same: every court is different. On hard courts I have this ability to kind of quite fast get used to it. On clay, I need more time.”

Medvedev aims to become only the second Russian man in history to win the French Open after Yevgeny Kafelnikov in 1996. The tournament will begin a week on Sunday. 

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Stefanos Tsitsipas Says Expanded Masters Events ‘Playing A Massive Role’ In Player Injuries

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Credit Francesca Micheli/Ubitennis

Stefanos Tsitsipas has slammed the decision to extend the length of Masters 1000 tournaments to two weeks by warning that more injuries could occur in the future as a result. 

This week’s Rome Masters is taking place without two out of the world’s top three players. Jannik Sinner pulled out of his home event due to a hip injury and Carlos Alcaraz has been troubled by a forearm issue in recent weeks. Other players missing from the draw include Tomas Machac (Illness), Ugo Humbert (Left Knee) and Stan Wawrinka (Right Wrist). 

The tournament is taking place immediately after the Madrid Open which is also a Masters event that has been expanded to a two-week format in recent years. Supporters of the move argue that a bigger draw provides lower-ranked players with more opportunities to play in these events whilst others will have a day off between matches. 

However, world No.8 Tsitsipas isn’t completely happy with the schedule which he openly criticised on Monday following his 6-2, 7-6(1), win over Cameron Norrie. The Greek has won 12 out of 14 matches played on clay so far this season. 

“It’s a type of thing that hurt the sport a little bit, to have these types of things happen to the highest of the players,” Tsitsipas commented on his rival’s injuries.
“Without them, the show is not kind of the same. You have obviously the guys behind them (in the rankings). These kinds of tournaments deserve names like this to be playing and have the opportunity to play in front of these big stadiums and crowds.
“I’ve spoken about the fact that the schedule has a big toll on our bodies. It starts from the mental side, and it follows to the physical side. The extension of the days in the Masters 1000s I think plays a massive role and contributes a lot to the fact that these players are getting injured.”

The ATP’s extended format is set to be applied to seven out of the nine Masters 1000 tournaments from 2025. The only two yet to make or plan for such changes are Monte Carlo and Paris. However, Tsitsipas has called for changes to be made to the schedule.

“It was perhaps already a lot the way it was before with the seven-day events. Adding more days to that, well, you got to be some type of superhero to be consistent back-to-back 10 days in each event getting to the very end of it.” He commented.
“It’s not a very easy thing to do. Some people need to try it first to get an understanding and how it is to pull that off. Then they should make decisions based on that.
“I think this is not going to be the first time we see these types of things (player injuries). If these types of things continue with the same schedule not being adjusted or customized to the needs of the players, we might see more of these things occur in the future.”

It is not the first time a player has raised concerns about the extended format. Alexander Zverev previously said that the schedule is a disadvantage for the top players. Meanwhile, on the women’s Tour Caroline Garcia has criticised the move to expand WTA 1000 tournaments whilst Maria Sakkari said achieving the Madrid-Rome double has become harder to do

On the other hand, Daniil Medvedev has spoken in favour of the new format and describes injuries on the Tour as ‘part of the sport.’ The former US Open believes the issue is related to the quick surface changes players face and not the duration of tournaments. 

Tsitsipas will play Alex de Minaur in the fourth round of the Italian Open on Tuesday. 

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Novak Djokovic To Undergo Medical Check After Rome Thrashing, Bottle Incident

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Novak Djokovic – ATP Roma 2024 (foto: Francesca Micheli/Ubitennis)

Novak Djokovic has indicated that he will speak to doctors following his lacklustre performance at the Italian Open where he crashed out in straight sets. 

The five-time champion was far from his best against Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo as he struggled to generate any rhythm in his tennis or a single break point opportunity. Djokovic’s below-par performance caught many off guard, including the tennis player himself who admitted afterwards that he was ‘completely off’ his game. 

Trying to find the reason behind his latest performance, the world No.1 isn’t ruling out the possibility that it might be linked to an incident that took place at the tournament two days ago. Following his win over France’s Corentin Moutet, Djokovic suffered a blow to his head after a fan accidentally dropped a metal bottle from the stands. Immediately afterwards, he experienced nausea, dizziness and bleeding for up to an hour but was checked by medical officials.

“I don’t know, to be honest. I have to check that.” Djokovic replied when asked if the incident affected his form on Sunday.
“Training was different. I was going for kind of easy training yesterday. I didn’t feel anything, but I also didn’t feel the same.
“Today under high stress, it was quite bad – not in terms of pain, but in terms of this balance. Just no coordination. Completely different player from what it was two nights ago.
“It could be. I don’t know. I have to do medical checkups and see what’s going on. “

The tennis star said he managed to sleep fine after his head blow but did experience headaches. He looked to be in good spirits the day after it happened and even turned up to practice in Rome wearing a safety helmet.

Djokovic’s concerns come two weeks before the start of the French Open where he is seeking a record 25th Major title. He will undoubtedly be one of the contenders for glory but admits there is a lot of work that needs to be done in the coming days. 

“Everything needs to be better in order for me to have at least a chance to win it,” he said.
“The way I felt on the court today was just completely like a different player entered into my shoes. Just no rhythm, no tempo, and no balance whatsoever on any shot.
“It’s a bit concerning.”

The French Open will begin on Sunday 26th May. 

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