Now that the Novak Djokovic scandal Down Under is behind us we can get to what else it exposed: the lack of courage on the men’s professional tennis tour.
Calling out Novak Djokovic for a level of unprecedented sporting selfishness, regardless of his world ranking, was the right thing to do. But few of his fellow men really did.
Sure, Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal, two legends of the sport who are Djokovic’s historic rivals and friends, offered their takes. Stefanos Tsitsipas had the guts to say Djokovic has been “playing by his own rules” and added that he “makes the majority look like they’re all fools.”[1]Guys like Nick Kyrgios and Alexander Zverev also chimed in, and yet they each of the three lacks a certain credibility. Tsitsipas is still recovering from perception of his bathroom breaks at the … Continue reading
But where were the others?
Instead for nearly two weeks the silence of the ATP men spoke. In the end the few who did (and the tameness of their remarks) couldn’t cover for the many who didn’t.
Leadership is not simply doing something that others will follow. It’s harder than that. It requires taking an urgent stand—doing or saying the thing that most people already feel but can’t bring themselves to say—because it’s the right thing to do.
For that all the men would do well to pay attention to the WTA tour and its women who have spoken up about another serious matter.
What leadership looks like
When tennis player Peng Shuai accused a top Chinese Communist official of sexual assault, its government went into censorship overdrive.[2]While violating a country’s Covid protocols and allegations of sexual assault are markedly different matters, they both tap a moral nerve, which at a certain point requires something of us and … Continue reading
Shuai’s social media post detailing the event was deleted in China in 30 minutes, as were all reposts, screenshots and even conversations related to it.
It is easy for untold millions to simply go along with the aim of the censorship and forget about the act in question.
But fellow player Alize Cornet took a stand. After Shuai’s disappearance, Cornet took to Twitter asking her fellow pros to “not remain silent” and started the #whereispengshuai campaign.
“I’m used to opening my mouth when something is bothering me,” she told tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg. “So that’s just what I did. I’ve been true to who I am, and I couldn’t let this go. I’m really happy that all these people followed me, and the turn it took was really unexpected. Like the reaction of Steve Simon and everything that followed was really, really huge.”
Steve Simon takes a stand
Steve Simon is the CEO of the WTA. He too took a stand, demanding a Chinese investigation that is “full, fair and transparent.” When that was predictably declined by the Chinese government amidst its coverup he took an unprecedented stand: he suspended operations in China, sacrificing many millions of dollars in the process.
His reasoning was deliberate. The leadership in China, he said, “has not addressed this very serious issue in any credible way.”
He added “None of this is acceptable nor can it become acceptable. If powerful people can suppress the voices of women and sweep allegations of sexual assault under the rug, then the basis on which the WTA was founded—equality for women—would suffer an immense setback. I will not and cannot let that happen to the WTA and its players.”
World #3 Garbiñe Muguruza of Spain once again this week expressed concern over Shuai. “Are we going to know something about this?” she asked. “I don’t know, I think it’s a complicated country to deal with.”
She added, “I think it’s going to be very difficult to find a real truth and for her to be able to talk freely.”
If China won’t—and so far its expected response is utterly insufficient—it’s good to know that (at least some) others will.
Where that leaves the men
We certainly don’t need the ATP tour to become a locker room full of opinionated activists as we’ve seen in the NBA and NFL. But it would be nice to see they’re willing, when necessary, to show us they can do more than whack the shit out of fuzzy yellow balls.
Show us perhaps that they have some of their own, that they can take a substantive moral position on matters, especially when their sport is involved.
They largely failed with the Djokovic fiasco but a new challenge beckons. More of them can join their WTA colleagues re the ongoing Shuai situation. Some have already started to speak up.
The Olympics come to Beijing in February. I will watch none of it.
The ATP tour itself heads to China in the fall of this year. Will the tour follow Simon’s lead or will its players choose to once again befriend the status quo because it’s more comfortable, and lucrative?
Steve Simon would relate to the former choice, the NBA’s Adam Silver to the latter.
Either way, a telling choice will be made.
Notes, etc.
| ↑1 | Guys like Nick Kyrgios and Alexander Zverev also chimed in, and yet they each of the three lacks a certain credibility. Tsitsipas is still recovering from perception of his bathroom breaks at the U.S. Open. Kyrgios seems to have an opinion about everything and has rarely if ever backed it up with play or effort to match his charisma. And Zverev is currently under investigation for domestic abuse. |
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| ↑2 | While violating a country’s Covid protocols and allegations of sexual assault are markedly different matters, they both tap a moral nerve, which at a certain point requires something of us and them. A greater danger often lies not in actions themselves but in people’s non-responses to those actions that are known to be problematic. |