DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Novak Djokovic said he was “happy” to return to tennis in Dubai shortly after the Australian Open fiasco, a country he was expelled for refusing to be vaccinated against COVID-19. 19.
“I look forward to coming back to play on Monday […] “I miss tennis after everything that happened,” the world number one told reporters on Thursday during a visit to his country’s Serbia kiosk at the World Expo in Dubai.
His refusal to be vaccinated led him to miss the Australian Open in January, making international headlines and allowing Spaniard Rafael Nadal to set the record for the men’s Grand Slam title at 21, one better than Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.
The Serb is participating in the Dubai ATP 500 tournament that will be held from Monday in the rich Gulf emirate, where the vaccine against Covid is not mandatory.
In an interview with the British television channel BBC, he said that he was “ready to pay the price” for his convictions against the vaccine, leaving the Roland Garros and Wimbledon tournaments if necessary.
“The principles that lead to making decisions about my body are more important than a title or anything else,” he said in an interview Tuesday.
Expelled from Australia, Novak Djokovic had stopped in Dubai after failing to persuade Australian courts to accept his appeal against his government visa waiver on the eve of the start of the Australian Open where he dreamed of a 21st Grand Prix. Slam title.
