International tennis leaders said on May 31 that Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic, who wrote "Kosovo is the heart of Serbia" on a camera at the French Open, did not break competition rules as "political statements are not prohibited". 

Djokovic defended his action during an interview given to Serbian media, saying that Kosovo is the "cradle, the fortress" of Serbia. 

The International Tennis Federation (ITF), the sport's governing body, said it had received a request from the Kosovo Tennis Federation calling for Djokovic to be sanctioned for his actions. 

However, they stressed that such statements do not conflict with the regulations for Grand Slam competitions, such as the French Open. 

"The rules for the conduct of players in a Grand Slam competition are governed by the Grand Slam rules, administered by the relevant organizer and regulator. There is no provision in this regulation that prohibits political statements," an ITF spokesperson said in an emailed statement. 

Djokovic will face Hungarian tennis player Marton Fucsovics on May 31. The head of the Kosovo Olympic Committee, Ismet Krasniqi, had said the day before that "Djokovic has again promoted the propaganda of Serbian nationalists and has used the sports platform to do so". 

"Further statements, after the match, made by such a public figure, without any sense of remorse, directly result in increasing the level of tensions and violence between the two countries," said Krasniqi. 

According to him, the International Olympic Committee should investigate the case, opening disciplinary procedures against the athlete.