According to the newspapers “Telegraph” and “Mirror”, those responsible for the Wimbledon tournament do not want to give any assurance that Djokovic will be able to defend his title at the Grand Slam tournament in London next summer. So you reserve the right to impose stricter CoV rules than those currently prescribed by the British government. So far, unvaccinated top athletes have been allowed to enter the UK to train and compete there.
Even clearer things could be heard from Spain on Tuesday, where Djokovic has a house and stays more often. “He should be vaccinated against Covid-19, that would be the sensible thing to do,” said a government spokeswoman at a press conference when asked whether the superstar could play tournaments in Spain. In April and May, the important French Open preparatory tournaments take place in Barcelona and Madrid.
Participation in the clay court major in Paris in May is also shaking for Djokovic. French Sports Minister Roxana Maracineanu had announced that national and international athletes will only be able to compete in France if they are vaccinated or have recovered. Participation in the US Open in New York is also only possible for vaccinated people.
Expulsion from Australia
Djokovic was expelled from Australia on Sunday after days of legal battle. The world number one wanted to take part in the Australian Open unvaccinated with a medical exemption. However, his visa was annulled because he could not provide sufficient evidence of the special permit. The federal court in Melbourne declared the visa withdrawal to be legal, after which the Serb had to leave the country.
The Belgrade newspaper “Informer” headlined on Tuesday: “Novak has to make a decision: vaccination or end of career. If he can’t play, he loses 40 million euros in sponsorship money.” The Serbian newspaper “Vecernji Novosti” fumed: “For Novak, one door closes after the other: you don’t let him become the number one of all time.”
Australian tennis association is examining how to proceed
Australia’s tennis association meanwhile wants to put its approach to the test after the “court farce” surrounding Djokovic. There are always lessons to be learned, said Tennis Australia. As every year, they want to review all aspects. At the same time, the association apologized for the vortex that had arisen. “We understand that recent events have been a major distraction for everyone,” Tennis Australia said, without mentioning Djokovic’s name.
Demands in various Australian media to remove Australian Open boss Craig Tiley from his post are not to be followed. Djokovic was initially allowed to play at the Australian Open, Tiley also said after the Serb’s first arrest that he would have welcomed that. After that, he no longer commented publicly on the cause. Tennis Australia will illuminate the whole event after the end of the current tournament, it said.
