Will Novak Djokovic be able to compete in the US?

Novak Djokovic will be missing more tournaments because of his anti-vaccination stance. He will not be playing at the Indian Wells Masters nor at the Miami Open, as the Centers for Disease Control has confirmed that foreign visitors cannot travel to the country if they are not fully vaccinated against covid-19.

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Automatic inclusion in Indian Wells draw

The former number one was automatically listed as a competitor in the two tournaments, also known as the “Sunshine Double”, and was in fact included in the draw for the BNP Paribas Open. In a tweet, he said he was aware that it was unlikely that he would be allowed to take part in US tournaments, and wished all the participants well.

“The CDC has confirmed that regulations won’t be changing so I won’t be able to play in the US. Good luck to those playing in these great tournaments,” he wrote.

The BNP Paribas Open men’s singles begins on Thursday, and as he was given a second-round match against either David Goffin or Jordan Thompson, he would have been due to play in the weekend.

Djokovic's depleted tournament options

Djokovic was detained twice in Australia before finally being deported because of his choice not to receive the vaccine against covid-19. He was thus not able to defend his Australian Open title, and the trophy eventually went to Rafael Nadal.

He may be allowed to play in France to defend his French Open title, after the country announced that it would be easing covid-19 restrictions. If the regulations do not change by the time the tournament starts in May, he might be able to take part in his first Grand Slam event of the year.

The 34-year-old has lost the top spot in the ATP rankings to Russian Daniil Medvedev, who will participate in Indian Wells as a neutral while his country continues its invasion of Ukraine.