"Can't start a union and say we represent you" - Andy Roddick delivers brutal verdict on Novak Djokovic's claim of fighting 'injustice' through PTPA

Andy Roddick recently criticized Novak Djokovic for promoting the Professional Tennis Players' Association (PTPA) while speaking at an event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. According to the former No. 1 and 2003 US Open, the Serb's attempt to curb perceived 'injustice' in tennis through the PTPA, which he co-founded with Vasek Pospisil back in 2019, hasn't led to much.

Djokovic, another former No. 1, and a 24-time Major champion, said during his appearance at The Joy Forum in Riyadh:

"When you see there's injustice, you do something about it. In our sport, there's a big monopoly that has been there for decades. That was actually the biggest inspiration for and Vasek Pospisil, who's my colleague tennis player, we co-founded PTPA, which is basically a union for players, which we don't have."

Reflecting on the Novak Djokovic's take subsequently, Andy Roddick opined that the PTPA has failed in its attempts to address players' concerns spanning the ATP and WTA tours. The American opined that decisions pertaining to an organization for representing players should boil down to the consent of the players themselves.

"I just think that the players need to decide who is who is that for them. I don't think you can start a union and then say we represent you. I don't think that's the way it works and it hasn't worked for the PTPA," Roddick said on an episode of the 'Served' podcast.

Andy Roddick reacted to Novak Djokovic-led PTPA's controversial lawsuit against tennis' governing bodies

Andy Roddick at the 2025 Laver Cup (Source: Getty)

Earlier this year, the Novak Djokovic-led PTPA raised eyebrows after it sensationally announced a lawsuit against all the governing bodies of tennis citing lack of transparency and unfairness.

The lawsuit accused the sport's governing bodies of functioning collectively like a 'cartel' and highlighted a number of perceived issues in the already-existing scheme of things such as the ranking system, mandatory participation of players at tournaments based on sponsorships and more.

Andy Roddick, finding fault with how the lawsuit was presented, said on the 'Served' podcast:

"My biggest hope for this lawsuit, as much as you know, I agree with the macro issues of tennis and disagree with the way that this was delivered. I thought it was in I think it's an ugly look for tennis, hopefully this creates a sense of urgency for the tours and the slams with the issues that players have with them that hasn't been there before."

Interestingly, Djokovic himself admitted to not agreeing with certain aspects of the lawsuit.