Jurgen Melzer: Novak Djokovic knows his responsibilities and he has been involved

Austrian doubles star Jurgen Melzer says Novak Djokovic knows very well what it means to be the President of the ATP Player Council and that there is a big responsibility.

World No. 1 Djokovic came under fire after four players tested positive for the coronavirus at his Adria Tour event and some have called for him to be relieved from his duty at the ATP Player Council.

"It's a very tough task," Melzer said on Eurosport's Tennis Legends Podcast, as revealed on Sportskeeda. "But when you sign up for it, you've got to put your name up there if you want to be president. So I guess, he has thought about it that it is time-consuming. So once you are the president, I think it's your responsibility to actually be there, attend the calls and try to make it better for the players because you are obviously the number one in the world having the biggest voice or one of the biggest voices."

Jurgen Melzer says Djokovic cares 

17-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic missed the ATP Zoom call which was attended by players and some of the governing bodies of tennis. 

The Serb was criticized for skipping the call but Melzer says for the most part the 33-year-old has been involved in what's taking place.

"I think it has been challenging for him," Melzer said. "I mean he missed a couple of calls that has been discussed in the press lately. But that does not mean that he's not involved

"Sometimes, you cannot (attend) every call, sometimes you're busy, you have other duties that you have to fulfill. I think, he has been up-to-date via the guy that's responsible for us, Ross Hutchins, he has been in communication with him. So I think, he has been up-to-date all the time."

The season is set to resume on August 14 and Melzer admits players testing positive for the coronavirus at an exhibition event prior to the season restart wasn't something the game needed.

"Did he make us a favour with the thing he just did? Of course not! I mean you don't have to be a professor to say: 'OK, this was not good for tennis'. I think he knows now," Melzer added.

Jurgen Melzer, a former world No. 8 in singles, claimed one of the biggest wins of his career at the French Open in 2010, when he came back from two sets down to stun Djokovic in their quarterfinal clash.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3dUmJrp