Djokovic wants Grand Slams to pay bigger percentage
NOVAK Djokovic hosed down suggestions yesterday that he was pushing to create an independent players union to fight for even more prize money, and denied reports it could lead to tournament boycotts.
British media said the Serbian 12time Grand Slam winner, president of the ATP Tour player council, had raised the subject at a mandatory player meeting in Melbourne on Friday.
The London Times said he took the stage and suddenly asked that ATP officials and any non-players leave the room, bringing in an Australian professor with specialist knowledge of workplace law.
According to Britain’s Telegraph newspaper Djokovic, who has earned $110-million (R1.3-billion) in prize money, then outlined his argument that the Grand Slams pay out only about 7% of their income.
It said he compared this to American basketball, which pays about 50%. Some reports said the dispute could lead to tournament boycotts if players didn’t get more money, but Djokovic said this was not true.
“That wasn’t a subject I raised, no,” he said after powering into the Australian Open second round in his first tournament match since an elbow injury forced him out of Wimbledon six months ago.
“You’re talking about boycott, you’re talking about radical decisions to make and move so we can get financial compensations the way we deserve it. But there was no talks about that,” he insisted.
The Times said any new union would break away from the present setup under the ATP, the men’s governing body, which jointly represents the interests of both the players and tournaments.
The ATP refused to comment. At the players meeting Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley reportedly outlined plans to boost prize money at the opening Grand Slam of the year from $55-million (R675-million) to $100-million (R1.2billion) over the next five years.
Djokovic said “everybody’s trying to do their best” when asked about players getting a bigger slice of Grand Slam revenues. “We are here at the Australian Open, and they always try to compensate the players in the best possible way. Things are going in the right direction.”
He said although he was the ATP player council president, “I don’t sit at these negotiation tables”.
Kevin Anderson, who is vice-president of the ATP player council said: “I think there’s a big case to be made as far as percentage goes.”
Maria Sharapova acknowledged Grand Slam revenues were growing.
“I do believe that the players will ultimately earn more.” —