"He's a good-looking guy but he's married, you know that, right?" - When Novak Djokovic joked about his meeting with Gerard Pique at Shanghai Masters
Novak Djokovic met with football sensation Gerard Pique during the 2018 Shanghai Masters. The former Barcelona star attended the Serb's semifinal match against Alexander Zverev.
Djokovic discussed the Davis Cup with Pique, whose investment group, Kosmos, joined hands with the ITF in 2018 to introduce a new format for the team event. Djokovic, Roger Federer, and others had publicly stated that they would not participate in the event under the revamped format.
The players' reluctance stemmed mainly from the proximity of the ATP World Team Cup, which took place just a few weeks after the Davis Cup, at the end of an already exhausting season.
As President of the ATP Player Council, Novak Djokovic met with Gerard Pique to seek a mutual resolution. Following the meeting, the 24-time Grand Slam champion told the media that the discussion went well and joked about the Spaniard's marital status. Pique was married to pop icon Shakira at the time.
"You really wish that you were there for that meeting, eh? Yeah, he's a good-looking guy, of course. And he's a nice guy, as well (smiling). But he's married. You know that, right?" Djokovic said.
"The meeting with Gerard went really well. Again, we are very honest to each other. Ever since the beginning of the whole process, he was quite honest and shared his opinion transparently with me, never was hiding anything, and same from my side," he added.
Novak Djokovic on his discussion with Gerard Pique: "I'm not going to go into details; confidential information"
In the same press conference, Novak Djokovic refused to provide further insight into his meeting with Gerard Pique, saying he couldn't reveal the specifics due to confidentiality. He also emphasized the importance of maintaining a healthy relationship between the ATP and ITF.
"I'm not going to go into details, because I cannot," Djokovic said. "These are confidential information. But it's nice that at least, you know, we're talking and there is a dialogue also between ATP and ITF officials, which is important."
The Serb added:
"Davis Cup is historical, a traditional team competition with historical importance. Of course all of us, we want to try to work this out in the best possible way so we don't need to change the course of the history."
In January 2023, Pique's company, Kosmos, lost its contract with the ITF to run the Davis Cup. Although the partnership was initially set for 25 years, it was terminated after just five years.