Novak Djokovic's PTPA announces first-ever Executive Committee ft. Ons Jabeur, Paula Badosa, John Isner and others
Novak Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil's Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) has announced its first-ever executive committee, which includes six accomplished stars on the ATP and WTA tours, apart from founders Djokovic and Pospisil. Along with the announcement of the eight-member committee, which forms the leadership group of the PTPA, the organization also announced its guiding principles.
The six players other than the two founders to form part of the executive committee are Paula Badosa, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Ons Jabeur, Saisai Zheng, John Isner and Hubert Hurkacz.
The controversial PTPA, which was founded by Djokovic and Pospisil at the 2020 US Open, was initially criticized for having a male-heavy team, despite its goal of securing better rights and a greater voice for players, both male and female. The announcement of the new committee comprising such big names comes after the Serbian great said last week that he hopes to see more players understand how much PTPA can help them.
In an official statement, the organization's executive director Ahmad Nassar said that the likes of Badosa, Isner, Mattek-Sands and other new members joining the PTPA are among the strongest voices in the sport and will help the organization achieve its goals.
"We are grateful to have this extraordinarily accomplished and diverse group of women and men serve on our first Player Executive Committee," said Nassar.
"These individuals represent some of the strongest and most passionate voices in professional tennis, and they will have a profound impact on our efforts at the PTPA to serve all players," he added.
The PTPA is also fighting for an equal voice in decision making regarding matters on the tennis tour, along with the ATP, WTA and the Grand Slams.
Obtaining players' fair share of the business of tennis and protecting players from abuse among guiding principles of Novak Djokovic's PTPA
Novak Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil's PTPA also announced their five core principles, which include - taking collective action on behalf of players, enabling players to have a bigger share in the business of tennis by "obtaining players’ fair share", actively protecting players' rights, protecting players from abuse and safeguarding their welfare, and contributing to the vision and structure of tennis on the global stage.
As part of the PTPA Principles, the organization has also highlighted that players have a right to obtain fair and just "percentage-based player prize money" and "annual player minimum compensation."
Additionally, it stressed that players' right to a "fair" anti-doping program and support for challenging positive tests in a timely manner will also be among the focal points of the PTPA Principles, along with better access to mental health resources.
Djokovic himself was the president of the ATP Player Council before he resigned from the post and broke away to form the PTPA. He has previously expressed his belief that the current governing bodies and the PTPA can co-exist.