Novak Djokovic recently voiced concerns about the Olympics’ rules on alternate players in singles events. This issue arose after he played against Matt Ebden, who replaced Andy Murray at the last minute. Ebden, primarily a doubles specialist, faced Novak after Murray withdrew to focus on doubles, highlighting gaps in the replacement process.
Now, Andy Roddick has backed the Serb, believing that deserving singles players, who are on standby, do not get the chance they should in such cases. Roddick’s tweet sparked responses from prominent tennis figures like his former coach Brad Gilbert and Serena Williams’ ex-coach Rennae Stubbs, who also advocate for revisiting these rules.
He made a post on social media voicing his opinions.
The Olympics singles alternate situation is ridiculous. Players that don’t even/cant play singles at highest level getting the call is dumb
— andyroddick (@andyroddick) July 28, 2024
In fact, Gilbert and Stubbs went one step ahead and called for the Olympics organisers to penalise players who withdraw at the last minute.
ridiculous to not have at least a couple of alternates on site, also way to many late pullouts after the draw ✍️ made, should face some sort of penalty
— Brad Gilbert (@bgtennisnation) July 28, 2024
Agree
— Rennae Stubbs ♈️ (@rennaestubbs) July 28, 2024
Roddick’s influence adds weight to Djokovic’s argument, potentially driving discussions for change at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. His support highlights the need for a fairer system that ensures competitive integrity.
Roddick shows that he isn’t against Djokovic with recent comments
Roddick seems to have moderated his comments on Djokovic in recent times, following criticism for suggesting that the 24-time Grand Slam champion was seeking media and public attention over his knee injury.
Initially, the 2003 US Open champion implied that the Serb might and should have skipped Wimbledon due to this injury. However, Roddick clarified his stance later, acknowledging Djokovic’s resilience and focus on performance.
Many Djokovic fans have showcased their anger on social media, targeting Roddick in recent times. They have also highlighted past instances of Roddick criticising Djokovic publicly even when they played each other back in the day, such as after the Australian Open 2009 quarterfinals.
In fact, it is said that Roddick and Djokovic had a locker room beef after one of their vitriolic clashes. The former World No.1 American star has also been accused of favoring the likes of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal more in comparison to Djokovic.
Interestingly, in their last clash ever, Djokovic beat Roddick quite convincingly, 6-2, 6-1 and that happened to be at the 2012 Olympics in London.
However, with this stance, Roddick has not attracted the wrath of Djokovic fans and he too wants to see high-quality tennis action in Paris.
