Djokovic's game with the "one vision" rule, if you miss "tens of millions", what will be the gains?2023 is undoubtedly a fruitful year for the tennis giant. He surpassed Federer and Nadal to become the most Grand Slam winners in history, and he is even more glamorous in the money table. In total, he won a staggering $15,942,044, at least $5 million more than second-place Carlos Alcaraz. However, after all this joy, it was blocked by a new regulation, which caused an uproar. Dubbed "onevision", the new rules are designed to reward top performers, with a prize pool of up to $20 million that will be awarded to the top 30 players based on points.
Novak Djokovic was undoubtedly one of the biggest winners, winning two Masters titles, becoming the first 40-time champion in history, and achieving seven titles in the year-end finals. However, in the end, he finished in the top five and failed to win the huge prize money because his entry record did not meet the requirements of "onevision". The new rules require all prize winners to participate in all mandatory Masters and year-end finals, while retaining the right to reduce prize money based on the number of tournaments missed. Djokovic's absence from five Masters events in the 2023 season touched on that hard clause. As a result, the ATP had the right to cancel all of his winnings, and in the end Djokovic had to rub shoulders with the huge prize money. It is reported that the bonuses of the players will be paid by the end of January 2024. The incident sparked widespread controversy.
Pro-ATP arguments argue that rules are rules, and that Djokovic, despite his impressive results, will have to pay a price if he chooses to miss a game. The new rules are designed to encourage players to participate more in the game, promote the overall development of tennis, and be fair to other players. However, there is also an opinion that Djokovic's absence from the game was not deliberate, and may have been caused by force majeure factors such as injuries and personal reasons. His dominance was unassailable despite missing a few races, and his results were good enough to be hailed as "one of the best". It therefore seems unfair to deny his contribution in its entirety. For Djokovic and"onevision"We need to think deeply about the prize money competition.
Although on the surface it may seem like it's just about the competition between rules and individual cases, in reality, it reflects the complex game between the development of professional tennis and the interests of players. As the governing body of tennis, the ATP sets the rules with the aim of promoting the development of the entire industry, attracting more spectators and sponsors, and achieving sustainable development in the tennis world. However, players are an important part of the tennis world, and their level of competition and personal choices should also be respected. Therefore, how to strike a balance between the seriousness of the rules and the reasonable demands of players, and how to find a way to coexist between rewards and incentives and fair distribution, is a question that all tennis participants should think about. Perhaps, in the future, we can develop the rules in more detail, introduce a more flexible mechanism for the distribution of bonuses, and take into account the special circumstances of individual players as much as possible while ensuring the overall development.
Djokovic and"onevision"The prize race may be over, but the thinking it provokes will not fade with the passage of time. We look forward to the future, when rules and cases collide, how the tennis world will make choices, and what new stories will come