Djokovic defends the WTA: "It is the most successful and highest-paid women's sport, and I am proud of it"

Carlos Navarro | 10 Mar 2026 | 00.30

Djokovic had a clear answer to being asked about equality. Source: Getty

Streaming W50 Montemor-o-Novo live tennis

🎾 Kristina Novak vs Elizabeth Jurna

Sign up with Bet365 here
Make your first deposit of at least €5
Go to the “Live” section and watch every match

Watch the match on Bet365

Novak Djokovic advanced, not without difficulties, to a new round of Masters 1000. The Serbian is overcoming all his challenges in the Californian desert, but not without reaching the limit of his body; today was no different, facing Aleks Kovacevic who displayed a lot of determination but had no response to the Serbian's tennis in the crucial moments of the match, especially in a thrilling end to the third set where Novak showed courage and experience.

It is a victory that extends his stay in American soil, but a very special one, in a match against one of the few tennis players with Serbian heritage on the tour. Before heading into what we could consider the second week of competition, the moment was ideal for Djoker to sit down for a press conference and share his opinion on some current topics in the circuit, although one question surprised everyone: does Novak believe that there is equality between men and women in this sport?

The question caught Nole by surprise, especially when discussing the "evolution" in the 20 years he has been on the tour. When it came to narrowing down the focus and grasping the context of the question, the Belgrade native was decisive. "It's not about what I think: it's a fact. It's a fact that women's tennis has been, by far, the most successful women's sport on a global scale, as well as the best paid, so it's fantastic". Once the framework was defined and his subsequent response, Novak, of course, expressed his satisfaction with it. "I am content and I am proud that it is like this. I believe women's tennis is in a very good position.". Short and concise from someone who, as usual, never shies away from this type of issues.

Djokovic explained why today's match was so special for him and gave a magnificent definition of one of the most-used terms in the world of tennis

If the question about pay equality ignited the most determined side of Novak, the one who proudly supports women's sports, the two subsequent questions revealed the more analytical Novak, the one who dissects each topic with surgical precision and does not hesitate to elaborate when speaking with the press. Firstly, discussing his opponent today, an Aleksander Kovacevic whom he shares heritage with; secondly, talking about what the expression "tennis IQ" means to him, something like a player's intelligence on court. His responses, of course, are invaluable.

Djokovic and the prior scouting on today's opponent, as well as the importance of playing such a match

"We are not many on the tour (referring to players with Serbian heritage). It's great to see Aleks, who I think is a fantastic person and with whom I get along very well, someone with those Serbian roots, and his whole family. We train together quite a bit and get along great. We had only faced each other once before this match, on clay. I watched some highlights of his matches in this tournament: he was striking the ball very well, with very clean hitting. I don't recall facing someone who is not very tall (he has good height, but not extremely tall) and who could serve so precisely, finding the corners. It was incredible.

Perhaps today I didn't feel much rhythm in my return throughout the match, but he made things very complicated for me. Aces everywhere, many free points. I told him at the net: he had an impressive serving performance today, I know he's on the right path. I've always liked his style of play a lot. Single-handed backhand, something not so common nowadays. A lot of talent, great ball striking. What I think he has lacked in recent times is consistency, making a lot of unforced errors, but I believe he has reduced them. I know his coach, I know he has worked with Tiafoe and other players, and I see that what they are doing is paying off. He has scored great victories this week, and today I feel the match could have gone either way until the last couple of points. In the final game, he missed some first serves, gave me opportunities with the second serves, and I capitalized on it. That's all. It was a very unpredictable match, right to the end."

Djokovic and his personal definition of what having that tennis intelligence, that tennis IQ, means

"To put it simply, it's about finding a way. Finding solutions, a way to impose yourself. Tennis intelligence can be described in different ways. I value adaptability a lot, being able to have a very complete game. The tennis intelligence you see on the court in each match depends a lot, at least in my case and from how I view the evolution in my tennis, on what you do before playing the match: how diligent you are in your attitude every day, if you are able to nurture that thinking of trying to constantly improve, instead of just relying on your strengths and hoping your weaknesses are not exposed.

I think it's about a diligent, holistic, and multidisciplinary attitude: that's what ends up defining your tennis intelligence. When you have many weapons, you are more comfortable in finding solutions. When you hit a mental wall or you're not happy with the execution of your Plan A or Plan B, you must have a Plan C, D, E, F, whatever. You have to adapt to each player, surface, conditions. It's clear that it's easier said than done; you need years of development and growth if we're talking about the highest level. Some players have more talent than others, perhaps some escape from problems more easily, but what I refer to is consistency, being able to do it to have a very long and successful career."

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Djokovic defiende a la WTA: "Es el deporte femenino más exitoso y el mejor pagado y estoy orgulloso de ello"

Novak Djokovic