Alexander Zverev abuse case highlights lack of ATP policy

Deutsche Welle

Publish : 22 Jan 2024, 06:48 PM

The ATP Tour, which runs men's tennis, doesn't currently have a policy for domestic abuse. It faces questions about its handling of the Alexander Zverev case.

Alexander Zverev's upcoming assault trial has brought the ATP Tour's lack of a domestic abuse policy back into the spotlight, with top female players asking why the German is still allowed to play despite the allegations against him.

Zverev, the reigning Olympic champion, denies physically abusing an ex-girlfriend. Until his public hearing takes place at the end of May, he maintains the presumption of innocence.

The Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), an independent group co-founded by men's world No. 1 Novak Djokovic as an alternative voice to the ATP and women's WTA Tour, told DW it would back creating a policy.

"The PTPA is supportive of policies addressing domestic abuse, sexual assault and other serious crimes, similar to other professional sports, if they are clear, ensure due process, and are mutually agreed upon," it said.

"As an organization, we remain neutral on guilt or innocence. Regarding Zverev's continued participation despite the penalty order, we stress adherence to established processes and agreements."

Scope to stop Zverev competing?

In this respect, tennis is an outlier compared to other sports, particularly in the United States.

In basketball, for example, the NBA can put a player on paid leave during its own domestic violence investigation, after which, based on the findings, the player can be fined, suspended or sacked from their team. A criminal conviction is not required.

In football, Brazilian winger Antony was dropped by his country after being accused of abuse. Even though he wasn't charged with a crime, he agreed to take time away from his club, Manchester United, to address the situation.

Following previous assault allegations against Zverev, the ATP announced a safeguarding review, which also encompassed domestic violence. But more than two years later, the review is yet to yield a tangible outcome.

However, some argue there is already scope to prevent Zverev from competing. Under the tour's code of conduct, players mustn't act against the integrity of the sport, which includes being "charged with a violation of a criminal or civil law of any jurisdiction."

As a result, the ATP's fines committee can "provisionally suspend such player (...) from further participation in ATP tournaments pending a final determination of the criminal or civil proceeding."

The ATP failed to answer a question from DW about why it hadn't followed its own code of conduct, saying only that it wouldn't be commenting until Zverev's trial is complete.

Male players avoid issue at Australian Open

Zverev was recently elected by his peers to be one of their representatives on the ATP's players' council for 2024-25. The council, which meets several times a year, is a forum for players to make recommendations to the tour's management.

Yet after DW revealed the date of the trial last week, none of those peers wanted to say whether they thought it was appropriate for Zverev to serve in the role, which could see him influencing possible decisions about his own case and future.

"I definitely won't comment more on that, because I don't know what the situation is," said Grigor Dimitrov, one of Zverev's fellow council members, at the Australian Open. "This is a matter that I think everyone needs to sit down together and discuss all of that. That's my message."

It has taken female players to express any concern about the issue.

"For sure it's not good when a player who's facing charges like that is kind of being promoted," said world No. 1 Iga Swiatek, when asked if it was appropriate for Zverev to still be playing.

Meanwhile, 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens, a former member of the WTA's players' council, said she couldn't imagine the women's game acting in the same manner.

"The ATP beats their own drum, they do what they do on that side," she said. "Would that happen on the WTA Tour? Probably not."

Zverev's sponsors largely quiet

The silence from Zverev's male counterparts has been mirrored by his sponsors.

DW contacted the six "brand partners" listed on his official website. Half didn't respond to a request for comment. Of those who did reply, Adidas, Zverev's biggest sponsor, said it was "monitoring" the situation.

"We don't comment on the contractual details of our partnerships, and it would be inappropriate to comment on any pending legal proceedings," the company wrote in a statement. "In line with our values, Adidas condemns all forms of gender violence."

Icebein, a firm specializing in cold therapy, struck an identical tone, suggesting some kind of collaboration on the wording of the statements.

Only Rolex, the luxury watchmaker, appears to have taken a firm stance on the matter, telling DW that "Alexander Zverev is no longer a Rolex Testimonee."

However, a company spokesperson declined to say when the partnership ended, or why Rolex's logo was still visible on Zverev's website.

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