Novak Djokovic has not yet given up hope of entering the US for the US Open despite his continued refusal to be vaccinated against the coronavirus.
“I’m not vaccinated and I don’t plan to get vaccinated,” the 35-year-old said after winning his seventh title at Wimbledon. His only option, he said, was for the mandatory vaccination to be overturned or for him to get an exemption. “I will wait for hopefully good news from the US because I would really love to go there. That would be probably the next big tournament, the next big swing to play one or two tournaments before and then the US Open.”
The last Grand Slam tournament of the year in New York begins on 29 August. Most recently, although mandatory testing before entering the US was overturned, vaccination against the coronavirus is still a requirement to enter the country, with a few exceptions.
Ivanisevic: “Maybe Biden will change his mind “
“If it doesn’t work out, I would have to see what my schedule will be,” Djokovic said. He would probably not play smaller tournaments, he said. “To be honest, I doubt I will be chasing points for the world rankings.” With no points to be gained at Wimbledon because of the ban on Russian and Belarusian players, Djokovic will slip from third to seventh in the new world rankings. But he expects to qualify for the ATP Finals in November by winning his 21st Grand Slam title, he said.
His coach Goran Ivanisevic also remains hopeful of a US Open start. “Maybe (President Joe) Biden will change his mind,” the former Wimbledon champion said. “If he flies to the States, it’s wonderful. If he doesn’t fly to the States, what can we do? There are other tournaments. There are a lot of crazy things happening in the world. Every day something changes, something new happens. We are looking at what is going to happen. It’s still a month and a half. “
