Novak Djokovic officially left the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) - an organization he co-founded in 2020. This decision has attracted great attention in the tennis world, especially as PTPA is still pursuing legal struggles to expand the rights of athletes.
PTPA was born with the goal of independently representing the tennis world, focusing on improving competition conditions, dividing revenue and increasing transparency in tennis management, which has long been controlled by ATP, WTA and the International Tennis Federation (ITF). For many years, Djokovic has been considered the typical face and voice with the heaviest weight of this organization.
However, the Serbian player confirmed his departure from PTPA, citing no longer agreeing on the operating method and development orientation. Djokovic expressed concern regarding transparency, management model as well as the organization's approach in recent times.
The rift between Djokovic and PTPA is said to have subsided throughout 2025. In March of the same year, PTPA sued ATP, WTA and ITF, accusing these organizations of abuse of power and maintaining illegal monopoly mechanisms.
The lawsuit then expanded to units organizing 4 Grand Slam tournaments. Notably, although PTPA announced a list of many supporting players, Djokovic's name did not appear.
Djokovic does not fully support the tough legal approach led by PTPA CEO Ahmad Nassar. The Serbian tennis player himself admitted to having some agreeing points, but there are also many contents that make him feel inappropriate, especially the wording and level of confrontation of the organization.
The conflict continued to escalate when PTPA reached a separate agreement with the Australian Open, thereby removing Australian tennis from the list of defendants. This agreement is said to include concessions related to bonuses and access to athletes. Djokovic believes that the move goes against PTPA's original principle of comprehensively reforming the tennis governance system, instead of partial compromise.
Sharing about his decision, Djokovic affirmed that he is still proud of the values that laid the foundation when establishing PTPA with Vasek Pospisil, but admitted that his personal views are no longer suitable for the current direction of the organization.
Djokovic's withdrawal is seen as a strong blow to PTPA's prestige and influence, especially in the context that this organization is still pursuing large-scale legal confrontations with the "big guys" of the world tennis village.
