Novak Djokovic, known to be one of the biggest activist players in the tennis elite, has lamented that players are "not unite enough" and criticised some top players that complain in the media about certain things, but later never do anything about it or further push for a change.
It comes after Carlos Alcaraz, Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek complained about the saturation of the calendar, with too many mandatory tournaments and, in particular the Masters 1,000, too long, which could hamper their physical shape in the long run. Djokovic doesn't disagree with them, on the contrary, but was very critical of players that complain but do nothing about it (via Tennis365).
"As a player and someone that has been playing on the highest level for more than 20 years, I can say that the players are not united enough. Players are not participating enough when they should be. So they make the comments and they complain, and then they go away. And then if something is wrong, after a certain amount of time they come back again."
Djokovic continues: "You need the top players particularly, you know, to sit down, roll up their sleeves, and really care a bit more about participating in understanding all of the hot topic, I would say. Because going out in the media and talking about this and that, okay, it might stir up some energy or some attention. But in the end of the day, nothing is going to change".
The contradiction in Alcaraz's complaints
Djokovic also points out a contradiction between players that complain about the length of the calendar but later sign up for exhibition matches, and thinks that, at the end of the day, it's an individual sport and players can still make choices.
"I see some players maybe say there are rules imposed and etcetera. But there are rules imposed for bonus. So you can miss the bonus, but it's the choice that you are willing to make if you want to play less", Djokovic said in what sounded like a near-direct hit to Alcaraz, who signed up for 6 Kings Slam later this month, an exhibition tournament with the highest prize money ever in tennis (so did Djokovic).
What do you think about Djokovic's words on the length of tennis season?