Dubai – Five weeks after being expelled from Australia a day before the start of the Australian Open, world number one Novak Djokovic returns to the court this Monday.
The 34-year-old Serb will face Italian Lorenzo Musetti in the first round at the Dubai tournament. The match will not take place until 17.30 German time. “I miss tennis after everything that happened,” Djokovic had said ahead of the $2.94 million event.
Still not ready for vaccination
Djokovic, who is still not vaccinated against the coronavirus, was unable to take part in the Australian Open in Melbourne in January because, contrary to his belief, he did not have a medical exemption to enter Australia after all. A federal court had rejected his appeal against the expulsion. Djokovic was thus unable to defend his title at the Rod Laver Arena and had to watch from Serbia as Rafael Nadal of Spain was crowned the record champion with his 21 Grand Slam title.
In an interview with the BBC, Djokovic had recently declared that he would continue to do without a vaccination for the time being. In return, he would also accept the possibility of not being able to take part in the French Open or Wimbledon. A negative PCR test is enough for the Serb to be able to play in Dubai.
For Djokovic, this week is also about first place in the world rankings. If the Russian Daniil Medvedev wins the tournament in Acapulco, Mexico, he will replace Djokovic as the world leader. Alexander Zverev and Nadal are also competing in Acapulco. Olympic champion Zverev, who won the event last year, will meet the American Jenson Brooksby in the opening match.