Pedro Martinez blogs about role on Player Advisory Council ahead of Novak Djokovic showdown | ATP Tour

player advisory committee

Ahead of Djokovic showdown, Martinez blogs about role on player advisory committee

Spaniard gives insight into ATP Player Advisory Council

January 18, 2026

The first meeting of the 2026 ATP Player Advisory Committee was held in Melbourne on Friday evening. Pedro Martinez, who has been a council representative since 2023, wrote a blog for ATPTour.com about his experience in the position ahead of his Australian Open first-round match against Novak Djokovic.

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It’s always exciting to be in Australia. For me, the Australian Open is a great tournament in terms of facilities, stadiums and the way players are treated. This year, I’m going to play Novak Djokovic in the first round, so it’s going to be a big match and I’m excited about it.

Before the tournament, I attended the first ATP Player Advisory Council meeting of the season. I begin serving on the Board of Governors in 2023 and will be in my fourth season working on behalf of players to make improvements for my colleagues and our sport.

I’ve always loved doing business and it’s always good to be involved on the other side of the coin. I was talking to a good friend of mine, Pablo Andujar, who was on the ATP board as a player before joining the ATP board as a player representative. He told me the benefits of coming here and I also spoke with Fernando Sanchez, the director of player relations.

Before I was on the Player Advisory Committee, I would sometimes complain about different things, but I had no idea how they worked. Until you become a council member, you don’t always realize the reasons behind different decisions and how all of them impact the growth of our sport.

The ATP is really trying to improve everything on tour for us. There are also different things, such as the prize money profit sharing formula for the ATP Masters 1000 event, which helps strengthen the partnership between players and tournaments through transparency and alignment of our interests. Starting this year, the ATP 500 event will also have a formula.

With the 12-day Masters 1000 tournament, they provide players with more competition opportunities and therefore more job opportunities. Once you’re on the Player Advisory Committee, it’s like you’re on a small team learning these things together.

It’s important to understand how everything works and what goes on behind the scenes to make it all happen. Tennis players often think about their own situation rather than what else is going on on tour. Players sometimes look at the bad side of things when they want to improve.

Pedro Martinez is a member of the ATP Player Advisory Council. ” style=”width:100%;” src=”

It’s especially good for me to be able to represent other players. I always tell them if there’s anything they want to change, just to let me know, I’ll try to share it with my teammates on the Player Advisory Council.

I got to compete in a few challenges in 2023 and I was able to share with the team what I learned from the experience. It can even be small things like the number of balls we provide and laundry service, or it can be things like providing meals to the players on site.

I still have many years left in my term on the council, so hopefully I can continue to learn and give my vision and share my life in the Championship. If I can help other players a little bit, I feel great.

Now I will focus on the race in Melbourne. I’m excited to play on Center Court. We come into this sport to play in the biggest stadiums and hopefully I’ll get a chance against Novak!