Novak Djokovic, the World No. 1 and 20-time Grand Slam champion, declared on Friday that he wants to end tennis' "monopoly structure," which favors the sport's top players. Following his Group Stage win over Cameron Norrie at the ATP Finals, Djokovic made the statement to the Serbian media. The 34-year-old also stated that “barely 150 players make a living from tennis in the men’s and women’s game," a condition he hopes to change with the support of the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA)
The PTPA is an unofficial tennis players' association founded by Djokovic with the goal of establishing a more equitable distribution of prize money in sports. To summarize the PTPA's mission, Djokovic aims to modify the tennis prize distribution structure to benefit lower-ranked players, particularly those outside the top 100 in the ATP and WTA rankings.
The Serb also mentioned how humans want to go along with the herd rather than speak up for individuals who are less fortunate. He went on to call humanity a "conformist" society, explaining that rather than being rebellious and questioning the system, we have a habit of accepting things as they are.
His drive to shatter the monopoly in the system has made him a "thorn in the side of many," according to the reigning Australian, French, and Wimbledon champion. He stated that no other sport in the world has this level of discrepancy, pointing out that only a small percentage of tennis players are able to make a living from their on-court earnings.
“Tell me any other sports where this is the case,” Djokovic said, “They put in the effort, but they aren’t listened to. The elite wants to rise while these players fight.”