Novak Djokovic poised to miss Miami Open after being denied vaccine exemption
Ryan King
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Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic is poised to miss the Miami Open contest after getting denied a COVID-19 vaccine exemption.
Tournament director James Blake confirmed that Djokovic will miss the feted event and voiced his misgivings over the situation. Djokovic has won the tournament six times, most recently in 2016. Organizers unsuccessfully attempted to help Djokovic obtain an exemption.
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“Obviously, we’re one of the premier tournaments in the world,” Blake said, per Reuters. “We like to have the best players that can play. We did all that we could. We tried to talk to the government, but that’s out of our hands.”
Men’s singles for the Miami Open is set to commence on March 22.
The United States currently has a policy restricting unvaccinated individuals from entering the country. Djokovic was catapulted into the international spotlight for his refusal to take the vaccine last year. As a result, he was ultimately unable to play in the Australian Open last year and has since been forced to back out of a handful of other contests in the time since.
A cacophony of Republicans such as Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rick Scott (R-FL) has urged the Biden administration to grant an exemption or change the mandate. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis similarly implored President Joe Biden to do that and even dangled the prospect of transporting Djokovic into the Sunshine State via boat.
“You know, there’s something called natural immunity, which the CDC didn’t want to recognize, but we all know is a fact of life. And so he poses zero risk to the United States, zero risk to the state of Florida,” DeSantis said earlier this month. “I would run a boat from the Bahamas here for him. I would do that 100%.”
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Djokovic has 22 Grand Slam titles, tying with Rafael Nadal for the most careers titles earned. The U.S. Tennis Association voiced optimism that Djokovic will be able to participate in the U.S. Open slated for Aug. 28.
“Policies concerning access to the United States are determined by the White House. We are very hopeful that the policy preventing Novak Djokovic from entering the United States will be rescinded, or lapse, in the near future,” the spokesperson told the Associated Press. “No COVID-19 restrictions are in place at the U.S. Open for any player, fan or other attendee.”