US Open: Djokovic banned, Nadal is categorical

Posted on August 29, 2022 at 6:35 p.m. by Bernard Colas

As in Australia, Novak Djokovic was not allowed to participate in the US Open due to his position on the Covid-19 vaccine. A decision regretted by other players on the ATP circuit, including Rafael Nadal, in the race to win a 23rd Grand Slam in his career.

This Monday starts theU.S. Openand at the end of a long soap opera whose outcome was ultimately little in doubt, Novak Djokovic was not invited to the event. As in Australia, the former world number 1 cannot play the last Grand Slam of the season because of his refusal to be vaccinated against Covid-19, preventing him from being able to enter American soil. Djokovic however, did not lack support, on the sporting level but also outside since the affair took a political turn on the other side of the Atlantic, insufficient however to allow the Serb to go to New York.

“Very sad news”

Of course, the case Djokovic still did talk in view of the start of theU.S. Openwhere everyone went from their position. Asked about the situation of his rival, Raphael Nadal publicly regretted this absence: From my point of view, this is very sad news. It’s always a shame when the best players in the world can’t participate in a tournament due to injuries or other reasons. In this case, not having one of the best players in history in the table of a Grand Slam, it still represents a significant lack, right? It’s tough for the fans, tough for the tournament. In my opinion, hard for the players too, because we want to have the best possible competition conditions. In a way, the sport is bigger than any player. Even if it’s not good news for everyone, the world goes on and tennis will go on after me, after Novak, after Roger. »

Federer, Djokovic, Nadal… Here is the GOAT according to this legend https://t.co/IB50qA8NCS pic.twitter.com/WQqcBp8Pp6

– le10sport (@le10sport) August 28, 2022

“Rafa would have liked him to be there so that whoever won the tournament won the tournament in the best possible way”

Reported by the Daily mail and We love tennis, Daniel Evans also expressed his disappointment at not seeing Novak Djokovic participate in theU.S. Open This year. According to the Briton, each player would have liked to compete against the former world number 1 during the American fortnight, and in particular Raphael Nadal. ” It’s a disappointment that Novak isn’t here. Obviously, there is a rule, but unvaccinated players can participate in the tournament. This is what I understood: if you are American, you may not be vaccinated. I think the main thing is that he would bring something more to this tournament. I don’t know what discussions they had with the United States, but I think it would have been nice to see him here. I also think players like Rafa would have wanted him to be there so whoever the winner would have won the tournament in the best possible way. “, he confides.

“It’s a shame he’s not here, it would have been good for tennis”

A position shared by Daniel Medvedevwinner of theU.S. Open last year against Novak Djokovic finally. “I wish he was there. We saw at Wimbledon that he didn’t need to play a lot of tournaments to be successful. He came and he won. He is such a champion. And his rivalry with Rafa, I have the impression that it is mounting in pressure. 22 Grand Slams to 21, these numbers are a joke… It’s a shame he wasn’t there, it would have been good for tennis. But it goes beyond tennis and it’s a decision of the American government, so it’s not to be discussed“, had declared the player before the opening of the tournament.