Djokovic: 'Gimelstob has been the biggest asset players had in last decade'
In a press conference, Novak Djokovic commented on the ATP Board member Justin Gimelstob stepping down from his role after being involved in an assault case. The world No. 1, who is the President of the Player's Council member, said: "Under the circumstances, it was a wise decision from his side and it's been a very hot topic in the last period. And it's unfortunate because I think he has been probably the biggest asset that players had in the last ten-plus years that he's been on the tour representing players. But at the same time, these are kind of unfortunate circumstances and he needs to go back and deal with that, deal with that case and try to find the right balance and the right state of mind before he eventually tries to come back. I think just at this point it was better for him to step down because the whole case was just posing so much pressure and obstacles for the tour in general, but specifically for players. And, yeah, so I think it was a good decision. It was his decision to step down, so he was very firm and understandable in the current situation. So, I supported that call and I supported that decision as I said. And all the other council players did that as well."
On Chris Kermode leaving the ATP Presidency, Djokovic added: "I actually think that technically he has the right to -- and I'm talking about Chris -- he has the right to be in a ballot again. He has the right to be a candidate officially for another mandate. And I don't know whether he wants to do that or not. I haven't spoken to him about it. But if this happens, yeah, why not. In our sport, we need as many quality candidates as possible. He's someone that has been a president for quite a few years and knows the tour inside out. And it's going to be a really important and interesting process for us of recruitment as well. I think several companies have been engaged now in the recruiting process and research, so hopefully, we can have quality candidates from inside of tennis, sports, and out of sports, so we can understand what is best for us."
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2VlKkNe
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