"You can't finish your semifinal match at 1 AM and play the final the next day" - Novak Djokovic backs Alexander Zverev over criticism of Madrid Open scheduling

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic has joined Alexander Zverev in speaking out against the organizers of the Madrid Open for scheduling a late-night semifinal on Saturday ahead of Sunday's final.

Zverev got past Stefanos Tsitsipas in a semifinal that began at 11 p.m. local time and ended at 1 a.m. in the morning. Following the match, the German went through a session with his physio and was also seen practicing his serve.

Zverev, who lost a one-sided final against Carlos Alcaraz 6-3, 6-1, made no secret of his displeasure with regards to the scheduling. The German was up until the wee hours of the morning ahead of the final, which began at 6.30 p.m. local time on Sunday.

Djokovic, who got past Aslan Karatsev 6-3, 6-2 in his opening match at the Italian Open, came out in support of the World No. 3 in his press conference.

"You can't finish your semifinal match at 1:00 AM and play the final the next day. I understand that they want to sell more tickets by scheduling a late night session on Saturday, but that can cause problems," he said.

Incidentally, Zverev faced a similar issue following his quarter-final win over Felix Auger-Aliassime.

"Two days ago I went to bed at 4:30 am. Yesterday I went to bed at 5:20 am," Zverev said. "If a normal person goes to bed one night at 4:00 am and the next night at 5:00 am, it will be difficult for them to be active. And for me, playing a final against Alcaraz, the best player in the world today and in a Masters 1000, the next day, is difficult."

"When I was the president of the Players' Council several years ago, I tried to solve this problem" - Novak Djokovic

The Serb called on tournament organizers to communicate better with players - Image ctsy: ESPN.com.ar

During his press conference, Djokovic stressed that tournament organizers should ideally speak to players regarding scheduling and revealed that he had attempted to sort out the issue when he was president of the ATP Players' Council.

"The organizers should talk to the players before making these kinds of decisions," the World No. 1 said. "When I was the president of the Players' Council several years ago, I tried to solve this problem. But still, nothing changed."

Djokovic withdrew his name from the Player Council elections for the 2021 season when the ATP cited a new conflict of interest rule after the Serb, along with a few other players, had created the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA).

The World No. 1 stated via a letter put out on social media that he would not contest the election to the ATP Player Council as he did not wish to create "conflict or uncertainty."

Djokovic, a five-time winner at the Italian Open, will play his next match on Thursday.