"I do not know if I will play": Novak Djokovic not sure to go to the Australian Open when the vaccine should be mandatory

The exchange between Novak Djokovic and Australian institutions is well underway.

It remains to be seen who will win the point.

And between the two parties, it is the Serbian who has the most to lose, namely a trophy that would allow him to become the most sacred player in Grand Slam (21) in the history of tennis.

This would require him to confirm that he is well vaccinated, passport essential to go to Melbourne in January (from 17 to 30), where he is the three-time defending champion.

At the antipodes, the position is still as clear as to the sanitary conditions to enter the country.

🎾 TENNIS - Will Novak Djokovic give up defending his title at the @ AustralianOpen? @DjokerNole #Djokovic #AusOpen

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- Orange Sports (@Orangesportsfr) October 18, 2021

"If I understand correctly, the government and Tennis Australia (the Australian Federation) will make their final decision in two weeks," Djoko said in an interview with the daily Blic.

Like this year, there will be a lot of restrictions.

From what I heard from my agent, they are trying to improve conditions for all players, vaccinated or not.

Considering all of this, I'm still not sure if I'll be playing in Melbourne.

There is excessive speculation on the part of the media too, which bothers me a lot.

The media is putting pressure on a lot of people.

Right now there is too much that is not clear, too much information that is not valid, then it turns out to be valid, and then it is not.

"

Read alsoCovid-19: whether or not to promote the vaccine, a divisive subject among athletes

This Tuesday morning, one of the Australian government figures provided details that will undoubtedly make the champion think: "I don't think an unvaccinated tennis player will have a visa to come to this country," said Dan Andrews. , Prime Minister of the State of Victoria, whose capital Melbourne is hosting the Australian Open in January. The virus loses interest in your ranking or the number of Grand Slam tournaments you have won. And if these players got a visa, they would probably have to stay in quarantine for two weeks, unlike other vaccinated players. "

The ball is therefore in Novak Djokovic's court.

If he wants to pass Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the classification of Grand Slam victories (they are at 20 each), the Serbian will have to show white paw.

Before that, he will first have to play in the Rolex Paris Masters (November 1 to 7), and should then be present for the Turin Masters (November 14-21), then the Davis Cup (November 25-December 5).