Novak Djokovic must be vaccinated to play Australian Open, says immigration minister

Djokovic cries after losing to Medvedev the US Open 0:54

(Reuters) -

Novak Djokovic will not be able to enter Australia to defend his Australian Open title unless he is fully vaccinated against covid-19, the country's immigration minister said on Wednesday, casting doubt on the Grand Slam record. from Serbian.

World number one Djokovic, who is on par with Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal in 20 Grand Slam titles, has refused to reveal his vaccination status and said he is not sure whether to defend his Australian Open crown.

Clarifying Australia's visa requirements, Immigration Minister Alex Hawke said foreign players would need to have received two vaccinations to play the Grand Slam at Melbourne Park in January.

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"You will need to be doubly vaccinated to visit Australia. That is a universal app, not just for tennis players. I mean all visitors to Australia will need to be doubly vaccinated," Hawke told Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio.

"I don't have a message for Novak. I have a message for everyone who wishes to visit Australia. They should be twice vaccinated."

Aside from Serbian Djokovic, who has won nine of his Grand Slam titles at the Australian Open and the last three in a row at Melbourne Park, the rule could exclude dozens of players from the tournament.

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More than a third of professional gamers remain unvaccinated, according to recent media reports.

Both the men's ATP tour and the women's WTA have urged players to get vaccinated, but some have expressed reservations.

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US Open men's champion Daniil Medvedev of Russia and world number four Alex Zverev of Germany have expressed skepticism, although his vaccination status is unknown.

The world's number three, Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, said in August that he would only get vaccinated if it was mandatory, though he later said he planned to get vaccinated before the end of the year.

Tennis Australia, which organizes the Grand Slam, said it was working with authorities on conditions for players, fans and tournament staff.

"We understand that the details about international visitors entering the country have not yet been decided and we hope to have more information soon," the governing body said.

Australian Health Minister Greg Hunt said the country's rules try to protect Australians.

"They apply to everyone without fear or favor. It doesn't matter if you are number one in the world or you are anything else," he told a news conference Wednesday.

Australia has closed its international borders to non-citizens and non-permanent residents for 18 months, although there have been some high-profile exceptions.

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Australian citizens are expected to start international travel in a few weeks, but non-citizens are expected to be excluded until early 2022.

Authorities in the state of Victoria, which is home to the Australian Open, said they would not make special deals with unvaccinated athletes to allow them to compete even if they obtained visas.

Melbourne, Australia's second-largest city, has been closed since August due to an outbreak of the highly infectious delta variant, but will start to open on Friday, when 70% of the adult population in Victoria is expected to be fully vaccinated.

Novak Djokovic