Novak Djokovic says he’s going to have to “wait and see” if he plays the Australian Open after tournament chief Craig Tiley confirmed that everyone who attends the first Grand Slam tennis tournament of 2022 will need to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 — including all the players.
Djokovic, a nine-time Australian Open champion, has refused to say if he’s vaccinated — or if he intends to get vaccinated.
“We’ll see. We’ll have to wait and see,” Djokovic said after getting beat by Alexander Zverev in the semifinals of the ATP Finals on Saturday — marking his final match on tour this year.
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“I haven’t been talking to them, to be honest,” Djokovic added. “I was just waiting to hear what the news is going to be and now that I know we’ll just have to wait and see.”
If he does go to Australia, Djokovic can attempt to break a tie with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal and win a record 21st Grand Slam singles title.
The tournament is scheduled for January 17-30. The Victorian state government had earlier said only vaccinated persons would be allowed into the site for the tournament, and Tiley reiterated that on Saturday.
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“Everyone on site, the fans, all the staff, the players, will need to be vaccinated,” Tiley said at the tournament’s official launch. “There’s been a lot of speculation about Novak’s position, he’s said it’s a private matter.
“We would love to see Novak here, but he knows he needs to be vaccinated in order to play. He’s always said that the Australian Open is the event that puts the wind in his sails.”