Novak Djokovic, the 21-time Grand Slam champion, “believes things will change” and that he will be allowed to compete in next year’s Australian Open.
The Serbian admits he is running out of time to travel to New York for the US Open after winning his seventh Wimbledon title and 21st Grand Slam trophy.
Currently, only visitors who have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus are permitted to enter the United States, and Djokovic has stated that he will not receive the vaccine.
Djokovic was dealt a major blow earlier this year when he was denied the right to defend his title at the 2021 Australian Open because he had not been immunised against Covid-19.
However, he is confident that his Australian ban will be overturned, but he is wary of the US Open.
“As things stand now, I cannot travel to Australia and the United States, but I am hoping to get positive news,” Djokovic told RTS following celebrations at Belgrade City Hall.
“I believe things will change for Australian Open. For the US Open there is not much time, but hope dies last. I would like to play at the US Open and Australia Open, but even if I do not it’s not the end of the world.”
During a post-Wimbledon press conference he added, “Whether or not I’m playing any tournament soon, I’ll definitely be resting for the next couple of weeks because it has been quite an exhausting and demanding period for me the last few months. A lot of tennis, which I was very happy about. I got what I wanted here.
“Then I’ll wait hopefully for some good news from USA because I would really love to go there. If that doesn’t happen, then I have to see what the schedule will look like.”
The 21 time Grand Slam champion knows that he has to get vaccinated in order to enter the U.S.A for the US Open but is still adamant on his decision saying “I’m not vaccinated and I’m not planning to get vaccinated, so the only good news I can have is them removing the mandated green vaccine card or whatever you call it to enter the United States or exemption.”
(Inputs from IANS)