Novak Djokovic’s battle to play unvaccinated tennis may be just beginning

Novak Djokovic has fought through his own and others’ adversity for as long as he has played tennis.

He overcame extraordinary odds to become champion, emerging from the former Yugoslavia despite economic hardship and the conflict that turned Serbia, his home country, into a cosmopolitan and international nation. making it difficult for him to walk and exercise. As soon as he was on tour, he had to compete with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, who were well on their way to becoming two of the game’s greatest players. Djokovic caught up with them and is currently holding a career advantage in both rivalries. He has also been at number 1 for 356 weeks, a record.

Djokovic, stubborn and resilient, has had tougher matches in his career than the one he faces this month with the Australian government over his visa. But this battle, which continued, was unlike any he had encountered. It can make him hurt in the long run even though he surprise victory in Australia on Monday, when a federal court overturned revoking his visa for procedural reasons. The ruling still does not guarantee he will not be deported by Australian immigration authorities before the Australian Open, which begins next Monday.

Djokovic’s five-day detention, which ended with a court ruling, was just a wink compared to the detention of several longtime asylum seekers with whom he shared his Melbourne hotel. Djokovic, unlike some lodgers, is also free to leave the country at any time. But experience has had to drain, and it comes after an extraordinary but emotional season in which he came in a match to reach a Grand Slam before losing. US Open Finals to Daniel Medvedev. He was also defeated at the Olympics and ATP Finals by Alexander Zverev.

Based on transcripts provided to federal court, he landed in Melbourne at midnight on Wednesday appearing to believe all of his paperwork was in order, including his exempt from vaccination. He’s early learn another way.

While it is highly unlikely that Djokovic, an outspoken vaccine skeptic, will again find himself isolated in any other country because of visa issues, trouble in Melbourne puts some difficulties he may face in the coming months if he continues to try to travel. world without a Covid-19 vaccine.

Governments are downright prohibitive in establishing or debating vaccine regulations, and some tennis officials are running out of patience. And the speed and direction of the coronavirus pandemic and its variants are still unknown.

The next big events on the tour after the Australian Open are the Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells, Calif. And Miami, both of which start in March. But the United States now requires travelers to be fully vaccinated to enter the country by plane unless they are US citizens, lawful permanent residents, or traveling on a US immigrant visa. Only a handful of exceptions apply, and it’s unclear if Djokovic will qualify for one or even want to attempt to qualify for one after the Australian-style match.

The French Open, the next Grand Slam of the season after the Australian Open, kicks off in May and is less of a problem. France’s sports minister, Roxana Maracineanu, told French national radio last week that she hoped Djokovic would be allowed to enter the country and compete if unvaccinated because of the increased health regulations. plans for major international sporting events in France.

But in the same interview, Maracineanu stressed that any athlete, French or foreign, residing in France will have to present proof of vaccination in order to enter sports training facilities. That is a sign that the fog is blowing. Some professional leagues still leave gaps, but gaps are also gradually closing for those who have not been replaced.

Djokovic, who has long held unconventional views on science and adopts unorthodox approaches to his health, finds himself in a distinct minority with more than 90% of the 100 tennis players. top of the ATP Tour is now vaccinated. If the ATP has made no official statement about public support for Djokovic during his detention, it may not be because Djokovic is currently leading a new group of players criticized by the ATP. because ATP has increasingly pushed its members to be more difficult. vaccinated.

In 2022, the league will not require vaccinated players to take more than one initial test when they arrive at a tournament unless they develop symptoms. Unvaccinated players and team members will have to be tested regularly, and the tour will no longer cover the cost of follow-up checks for the unvaccinated.

That won’t make it difficult for Djokovic, who has racked up around $154 million in career bonuses and hundreds of millions more on court. But tournament rules emphasize that Djokovic and the few remaining unvaccinated players are the outliers.

The Australian leader almost never gets glory in L’Affaire Djokovic. There have been mixed signals, conflicting memos and other miscommunication between federal and state officials and Tennis Australia, the host of the Australian Open.

If there had been a coherent, unified effort that sent a clear message about the medical reasons for the exemption from vaccinations, Djokovic’s overnight interrogation and visa cancellation could have been avoided.

He most likely would not have ventured to Australia if he understood that the federal government did not consider the recent case of Covid-19 as a basis for an exemption. But while Djokovic won in court on Monday, he has certainly lost support in some chambers of the court of public opinion, even though he has become a martyr for the anti-vaccination movement. and among his countrymen.

He’s not a drama magnet by accident. Too many things over the years have been purely coincidental. He could have avoided this altogether by choosing to get vaccinated but amplified it by deliberately refusing for months to clarify his Australian Open plans.

It was his signature Slam, where he won nine of his 20 singles Grand Slam titles. Djokovic believes that the positive test result for Covid-19 gives him a basis for medical vaccination exemption and has a chance to win the 10th Australian Open championship.

What is disturbing is that although he filed a document with the court confirming that the results were positive on December 16, he, instead of isolating, participated in public events, some while being exposed and some relating to children, in the days immediately following.

That should explain whether he stays at the Australian Open or goes. But then, he’s hardly the only one in this mess of apologizing, with explaining to do.

Whether Djokovic stays or goes, wins or loses, the turmoil won’t end in Melbourne. He faces a season filled with tough choices as he tries to navigate an increasingly immunized world and workplace.