Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have been told to “come clean” about what part they played in men’s top tennis players calling for Wimbledon to be stripped of ranking points over its ban on Russians and Belarusians entering the tournament.
The ATP Player Council on which Federer and Nadal sit has also been accused of undermining the global response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine following a major escalation of the row over the All England Club’s decision to exclude the likes of Daniil Medvedev from the sport’s biggest event.
Federer, set to miss Wimbledon through injury, has yet to comment on the decision, while Nadal last week branded it “very unfair”, warning: “We will have to see the measures that we take.”
Chris Bryant MP, the chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Russia, told Telegraph Sport the pair needed to disclose whether they had been involved in crisis talks over the Wimbledon ban and what position they had taken.
“Federer and Nadal should come clean,” Bryant said. “Do they want Vladimir Putin to fail or don’t they care?”
Recommendations by the 10-strong player council are not binding on the ATP – which condemned the Wimbledon ban when it was imposed last month.
But insiders feel its board has little choice but to take their advice on this issue ahead of a meeting on Wednesday at which a vote could take place.
Bryant added: “The men’s tour are behaving appallingly. It’s like they haven’t heard what is happening in Ukraine or don’t care.”
Clive Efford MP, a leading member of the Digital, Culture, Media & Sport select committee and a former shadow sports minister, said: “The ATP needs to take a look around and appreciate how the rest of the world outside its bubble will view it for sanctioning Wimbledon for supporting Ukraine.”
Nadal on Wednesday refused to disclose details of what he said had been “private conversations on the council” or reveal whether he backed the position arrived at.
He added: “[The] only thing we can do is be in touch with Wimbledon and the rest of the ATP management to do the things that work better to protect every single player in the ATP.”
Telegraph Sport has been told the All England Club has no intention of reversing its decision and that it views stripping Wimbledon of ranking points as a clear attempt to penalise it for its stance.
The player council could have instead called for Russian and Belarusian players’ points to have been frozen in the same way as if they were injured.
A source with knowledge of the council’s position said it had been arrived at with the “integrity of the rankings” in mind but was unable to explain how stripping Wimbledon and the UK’s other grass-court tournaments of ranking points better achieved that than a freeze.
Another source with knowledge of crisis talks between the All England Club and the ATP on the matter questioned the motives behind what appears an act of self-harm by players.
“This feels like penalising the many for the sake of the few, just to make a point.”
The All England Club suffered a blow last week when Sir Andy Murray, himself a member of the ATP Player Council until recently, refused to back its ban, saying: “I don’t support one side or the other.”
A representative of Murray has been approached for comment on the council’s position.
In an interview with the Evening Standard conducted before news of that position emerged, sports minister Nigel Huddleston said: “We completely supported the decision that Wimbledon made.
“While I understand there is some pushback from some players and governing bodies, I can tell you it’s got overwhelming support from the population. People understand exactly why they’ve done that.”
He added: “I don’t think we can be any clearer that Russia and Belarus are pariahs on the world sporting stage.
“And they will continue to be so as long as Putin continues to behave in the way he has.”
The WTA Tour has been approached for comment about its own stance on stripping Wimbledon of ranking points.