Carlos Alcaraz slams Novak Djokovic-led PTPA after being named in lawsuit, makes brutal ‘I am not supporting that’ claim

Carlos Alcaraz was quoted in the PTPA lawsuit. On page 71 in a section about poor scheduling, Alcaraz is quoted alongwith Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek.

The PTPA, co-founded by Novak Djokovic, filed a class-action lawsuit against the governing bodies of tennis, citing mismanagement and inequality in the sport. The PTPA accused the ATP, WTA, ITF and ITIA of creating an unfair system which exploits talent, reduces player earnings. The bodies were also accused of systematic failures in the development of tennis.
Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz slammed the PTPA lawsuit. The PTPA was co-founded by Novak Djokovic.(REUTERS)

So when Carlos Alcaraz was asked about the lawsuit during a pre-match press conference for the Miami Open, the Spaniard boldly stated that he does not support the PTPA’s lawsuit.

Also Read: ‘Tennis is broken’: Novak Djokovic-led PTPA files lawsuit against governing bodies; ATP and WTA issue strong response

“There are some things that I agree (with). There are some other things that I (don’t) agree with,” he said.

“But the main thing here is that I am not supporting that. So that’s it.”

Alcaraz also claimed that he was unaware about the lawsuit and only found out on social media. “Honestly, it was surprising for me, because nobody told me (anything) about it. So I just saw it on social media,” he said.

Carlos Alcaraz cited in PTPA lawsuit

But surprisingly, Alcaraz was quoted in the PTPA lawsuit. On page 71 in a section about poor scheduling, Alcaraz, Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek are quoted as saying, “Carlos Alcaraz criticized the Tours’ schedule, saying the Governing Body Defendants ‘are going to kill (players) in some way.’”

It comes from a Laver Cup press conference, where Alcaraz spoke last year. According to the lawsuit, he said, “A lot of players (want) to play more — or even more. A lot of players feel like, OK, it is a good calendar. And a lot of players (say) that it’s really tight and a lot of tournaments during the whole year,” he said. “I’m the kind of player who (thinks) there is a lot of tournaments during the year, mandatory tournaments, and probably during the next few years, gonna be even more tournaments, more mandatory tournaments. So, I mean, probably they are going to kill us in some way.”

Since then, the ATP and WTA have issued responses, strongly denying the accusations. The lawsuit comes after a lot of players, including Djokovic, were left fuming by the investigation of Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek’s doping cases. Swiatek served only a ban for one month. Meanwhile, Sinner is serving a three-month ban only currently, after reaching an agreement with WADA. Djokovic and many players have publicly questioned the investigations, and its lack of transparency. They have also pointed out the difference in punishments to other players, who served longer bans for similar doping incidents.