(Tennis news) Twenty time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic has revealed that he’s unsure about playing at the Australian Open 2022 claiming that things are “not good at all” Down Under. The Serbian has already confirmed he will be playing at the Paris Masters, ATP Finals and Davis Cup Finals.
The World Number 1 has not participated in a tournament since Daniil Medvedev defeated Djokovic in the US Open final. The 34 year old revealed that he started training on Monday after an extended break from the sport. “I started training today, It's been a long time since I last trained with a racket. Admittedly, I trained my fitness, but I have only just started tennis. Today I was Olga's sparring partner. I am preparing her, and we will see what kind of work I do as sparring when she goes to the next tournament" said Djokovic.
Djokovic has been particularly private about his vaccination status, a factor that will be of importance with respect to the Australian Open. He has previously pointed out that it’s against the law in Serbia to enquire about personal medical details. “I will not reveal my status whether I have been vaccinated or not," Djokovic said. "It is a private matter and according to our law, whoever asks you, you can in some way charge him for asking you. That is an immoderate question."
“I still don't know if I will play in Melbourne," Djokovic stressed. "I don't know what my schedule will be. There is too much speculation. The media speculates a lot and that bothered me a lot. I didn't advertise too much because everyone made some assumptions based on what I said a year ago. One and the same thing is going on and there is a lot of division in the society, not only in sports, but in the whole society, between those who have not been vaccinated and those who have been vaccinated and that's really scary."
There were a plethora of watertight rules at the 2021 Australian Open that annoyed a lot of tennis players including Novak Djokovic. Several of them were forced to quarantine for 14 days without any training, a factor which affected their fitness and form. Djokovic has urged players to unite and be involved in the decision making process before stringent rules are in place before the next edition of the Australian Open.
“The main problem is that if you are on a plane with a person who is positive, whether you are vaccinated or not, you automatically have to go to the room for 14 days," Novak Djokovic said. "That happened to Viktor Troicki in January this year. Not only him, but also 70 players had to be quarantined. I talked to a lot of players and that is something that everyone has a bad memory of," he added. "I would like the players to unite a little more, whether through PTPA or something independent or through ATP or WTA, just so that in some way we are relevant in some decision-making process. Now, I feel like the players aren’t wondering about anything at all."
The Serbian has reiterated that he does not expect much to change in the Australian Open 2022 compared to last year. He has revealed that his manager is in touch with the Federation of Australia about the latest ongoings. “I do not believe that the conditions will change much in relation to what we already know," Djokovic said. "As was the case this year, there will be plenty of restrictions. What I heard from my manager, who is in direct contact with people from the Federation of Australia, is that they are trying to improve conditions for everyone. Both for those who have been vaccinated and for those who have not."
