Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal appointed to ATP player council amid changing political situation
The duo have been outspoken critics of the direction in which the tour has been take over the last year
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The highly-charged political situation within men's tennis took another intriguing turn on Thursday when Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal were both appointed to the ATP Player Council.
Federer and Nadal have been outspoken critics of the direction in which the tour has been taken over the last year with their great on-court rival Novak Djokovic as council president.
The ousting of Chris Kermode as ATP executive chairman and president and support for Justin Gimelstob, one of the players' representatives on the board, after he pleaded no contest to a charge of battery have been the biggest flash points.
Gimelstob eventually stood down but, after his friend Weller Evans was selected to replace him, Jamie Murray, Sergiy Stakhovsky and Robin Haase subsequently resigned from the council following a meeting before Wimbledon.
It was expected that the remaining members of the council would elect players aligned with their own views to replace them but instead they have chosen to bring in two of the biggest stars in the game along with Austrian veteran Jurgen Melzer.
Both Federer and Nadal have previously had spells on the council and clearly want to have more influence on the immediate future of the tour at an important moment in its history.
Djokovic and his allies, in particular Canadian Vasek Pospisil, feel not enough of the revenue from tennis goes to the players and want to push much harder for change.
The next player council meeting will be held in New York prior to the start of the US Open later this month.
PA
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments