WESTERN & SOUTHERN OPEN

August 29, 2020

Novak Djokovic

Press Conference

N. DJOKOVIC/M. Raonic

1-6, 6-3, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: We have the Western & Southern Open champion here, Novak Djokovic.

Q. Congratulations. I'm wondering, there is so much going on off-court, and you also had to deal with an injury this week. How do you feel about being able to kind of focus?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: You're right. Yeah, there's been a lot of off-court things that I kind of had to be involved in directly or indirectly. It was not easy, definitely, especially in the last three, four days. Has been challenging mentally and emotionally for me to stay sane and be able to compete on the highest level and win this title.

A very exhausting three-hour match against Bautista yesterday, not too much time to recover for today's final, but my physiotherapist did a great job and also Clay, physio from ATP, they made sure that I'll be able to play and compete.

Was a bit slow at the beginning, but I thought I did well, considering the form that Milos is in. He has beaten some great players during this week. He's serving rockets on the court, and it's really hard to return. You know, you need all the freshness mentally and all the focus that you can possibly have.

So I did struggle with that, I must say. It was not the most ideal situation for me to kind of be competing in the last four of a big tournament and have to deal with a lot of stuff off the court, but those were the circumstances. I accepted them. I was fortunate to get the title, obviously, but it's a great lesson learned.

Q. We have seen the letter you sent out, and letters from Rafa, Roger, Kevin Anderson, other people on the council. How do you feel the association will work if half the people on the council are not for it? These are people you have worked with on the council. Is there really the unity that you have in mind, or is it disappointing that people like Roger and Rafa are not on board with what you want to do?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Look, first of all, I have been part of the council for 10 years, 10 to 15 years, really, more or less. I have obviously, as any other player, done it on a voluntary basis and tried to contribute my time, energy, passion, knowledge, whatever I possibly could to contribute to the betterment of the sport in one way or another.

You know, I value this experience very much. I think, you know, this group of guys in the council is really, really good, probably the best group I have personally been with in the last 10 years. I have been with three or four different groups.

The communication is much better, and obviously we all try to make things happen, you know, together with the management of ATP.

Of course things in this system and this structure as it is are quite complicated, not easy to follow through with the players', I would say, interest at all times, because ATP, Association of Tennis Professionals, that is divided between players equally and tournaments, and of course then you have Grand Slams, they are independent of that, separate entities, and then you have ITF and WTA and et cetera, et cetera.

So it's quite complex ecosystem that we are part of. Look, regarding the player association, I have to say that this is not a new idea. This hasn't been something that came out of the blue. This has been a project for many players and many different generations over the last 20-plus years.

I saw Andy Roddick actually tweeted, he was actually one of the people who was in the forefront when he was at top of his game to, you know, advocate the players association and stronger voice of the players.

We are one of the few global sports that doesn't have any player organization, player-only, I must say, organization or association. That has been the subject of discussion for, you know, also I think a wish for many players for many decades now.

So I don't want to sit here and tell you this is my idea or Vasek or anybody else, you know. I certainly think it's the right step forward for the players, because I think it unifies the players. It allows them to have a platform to have an association through which they will be able to express themself better where they will be able to, you know, talk about the ideas, the interests, and the things that are related to the players.

I have heard that, and I have read in the letter from ATP, that they think that ATP cannot co-exist with the association. I have to respectfully disagree. Legally we are 100% safe and we are allowed to form the player association. This is not a union. This is player association. So we are not calling for boycotts. We are not forming parallel tours.

I have seen a lot of different speculations in the media, and people coming out with just various things that we will do, which is, in a way, is expected, because it's a big thing, of course.

It's not new. I must underline that again. But at the same time, Vasek, myself, and obviously this generation have managed to make that final step. Well, hopefully. We are meeting with players today, and our goal is to try to secure, you know, support from the players and try to get an indication of support.

We don't have a minimum number of players that will sign or maximum number of players that will sign. We are focused on top 500 in singles, top 200 in doubles. We are hoping we can get majority of those players.

We are aware that it most likely will not be the case today, but we are giving it a time. We have to start from somewhere. I think this is an important step for players and for the sport, as well, because I see that there is a kind of a narrative going around that this is only good for players. I disagree. I think this is very good for sport.

And this has proven to be a good step forward for other major sports, global sports around the world, as well, that have similar associations in place.

Of course I would love to have Roger and Rafa on board. Of course I would love to have all the players on board. But I understand. I truly understand that, you know, some of them have different opinions and they don't think the time is right.

Again, I think the time is right. The time is always right, you know. It's like having a baby. The time is never right or it's always right. I mean, as I said at the beginning, this is a project that is ongoing for more than 20 years. Lots of players attempted to do what we're attempting to do right now and hoping we can make that first step and create memberships and create structure and create leadership and create a system.

We don't have answers to all the questions right now. We don't know yet who will be the people who will represent the players. We have a broad outline on what, the platform the association will look like. We're going to have our trustees, but we are also going to have the annual meetings.

I mean, of course once we have an indication of some major support that we, as a team, think that we should proceed with this project, then of course we will commence with all the different steps that are about to follow.

So right now, we are just trying to get a sense of how many players do really want to join this initiative. Then we will take it from there.

Q. Turning a little bit to tennis, last year you had a difficult time here. Didn't work out for you. You got off to a great start this year. Then we had the pandemic hit and there is some controversy and heavy weather you ran into. What would this tournament and finishing the year or this segment of the year on a strong note mean to you?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, you know, I also struggled unfortunately last year with injury of the left shoulder, but it came at the wrong time, obviously, just as I was starting to play the US Open. That's where I start to feel it.

I didn't have obviously enough time to get to 100% and, you know, hopefully get deep in the tournament.

I retired the match against Stan, and anyway, even if I was 100%, it's still no guarantee I would win against Stan because he's a phenomenal player and loves to play on a big stage and has beaten me in various Grand Slams and various surfaces.

But I always love playing in New York. I think I'm not the only one who shares the opinion that this is probably the most exciting, energetic, dynamic, explosive tennis court that we have in the sport with the fans and 22,000 people that fit in on that court. So I really am grateful that I got to experience so many times in my career the wonderful feelings on that court.

It is strange to see empty stands. The circumstances are very unusual. But we have to accept that, we have to deal with it and try to embrace it. I think I see also some positives, I mean, something that we have not experienced so much and obviously pressure is there when you're facing a breakpoint or you have to win a match. And of course for me the last couple of days it was a great fantastic two tests that I had prior to US Open.

But we also have the suite. Each player has the suite obviously, the ones of course that are seeded players, both men and women. That, you know, helps a lot I think to have your downtime and be with your team and, you know, have your quiet room where you can relax and get ready for the match.

So there are positives obviously, but you can sense that around the site there is a certain tension, as well, you know, because everyone is obviously being careful, but at the same time, you know, everyone needs to pay attention and follow the protocols and restrictions that are in place.

But I think so far this couple of weeks that we have been here, you know, the USTA and ATP and everyone involved has done a pretty good job, I mean, making sure that we are safe and that we are able to compete, because finally, this is why we are here, and hopefully we can have another great two weeks and US Open without any major issues.

Q. Congratulations on winning your title. On the player association, would you like to be in a position, if you want to increase the amount of prize money for players at Grand Slams, for example, would you like to be in a position in a couple years' time where you, as an association, are negotiating directly with those Grand Slams?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, first of all, I've got an answer to that question by saying that ATP and hopefully this player association, if we manage to formalize it and found it, can co-exist and should co-exist at the beginning.

Now, where that's going to take us, time will tell, I think. ATP has been an organization through which players are able to express themselves and fight for their rights. They have their representatives on the board, of course.

We do have that, so to say, position of executive decision-making, but at the same time, most of the times, actually, on the board you have three members, representatives of players that are kind of in conflict of interest with representatives of tournaments.

For a lot of decisions to be made, you need the super majority of votes, and if you don't attain that, then there is no voting.

That's why many of the maybe decisions that should have been made maybe in various departments or rules and regulations of whatever it is that we're talking about have not been made and take more time, because the system is structured in such a way.

Now, whether we want to be in the position to negotiate about prize money or not, I have no answer to that question, because we are not focusing on that at the moment. This is the responsibility of ATP, and we regard the ATP as the main governing body of our tour. We are members of the tour.

So we just want to, as players, we want to have our own organization and association that is 100% ours where we could discuss various matters that are concerning players' rights, players' future, players' present. Where that's going to take us, I'm not sure.

We are definitely going to try to work with ATP and all the governing bodies in sport. I mean, of course we are not going to have any executive power, at the beginning, especially. Whether that's going to change in the future, I'm not sure, but I'm hoping that, first of all, we can attain the majority of the support of the players, because I think it's important step forward.

I have been hearing in the last 10, 15 years on the tour, lots of players expressing the discontent with the way the players have been represented, especially the players who are outside of top 100. We are always focused on the top players, which I understand, but, you know, ATP Tour is, you know, a thousand-plus players. We have to listen to these guys and their needs.

There was been couple of groups of 200-plus players that have been formed pre-COVID and also during COVID and sending various letters to ATP and expressing their discontent with certain things that are in place, and they wanted more power, they wanted more voice, and they don't have it.

So obviously the guys who are ranked outside of top 100 are very important, and we have to try to create some platform that will allow these guys to be heard more.

Q. From the time you started climbing up the ladder of major titles until now, how has your perspective evolved on the role of major titles as far as place in history and legacy and the history of the sport?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I mean, it's hard for me to talk about, you know, my legacy or my position in sport from that standpoint. Obviously I am trying to make the most of my career, trying to use this time when I feel that I am physically, mentally, emotionally, game-wise at the peak I think and playing some of the best tennis that I have ever played.

I mean, going on an unbeaten run so far this year obviously brings even more confidence each match. I get to play next match. I'm just trying to enjoy it and embrace the process. How long that journey is going to last and what kind of legacy I'm going to leave behind, that's on somebody else to really judge and, you know, and evaluate.

But I'm trying to do my best. Obviously on the court with the goals and ambitions that I have, obviously I want to play my best tennis in Grand Slams and 1000 events. That's what I'm focusing on right now. And also off the court, trying to make the most out of the energy that I have preserved.