Djokovic fighting many battles

Tennis star Novak Djokovic's career in the short term still depends on the tournaments he can participate in, by virtue of the fact that he has decided not to get vaccinated. 

From the moment the Australian Open affair took place (between medical exemption, stay in "immigrant hotel" and decision of the federal court of Melbourne), the Serb cannot decide the tournaments but must comply with the country's rules regarding the vaccination for professional activity.

This is the case of the Dubai tournament, where Djokovic was able to participate because no vaccination was required, but a negative PCR test is done in the previous 72 hours.

On the European tournaments, however, there are greater doubts: the Internationals of Rome, for example, are at the center of the Italian debate precisely due to the presence (or not) of the former world number one.

One tournament that could enter the list of those who would welcome Novak Djokovic to their draw is that of Madrid.

The director of the Mutua Madrid Open, Feliciano Lopez, spoke about the presence of the Serbian at the tournament.

Feliciano Lopez, in an interview with MARCA, talks about a possible presence of Djokovic at the Madrid tournament, which will be staged next May. "Novak will be welcome, like all players," said the Spanish tennis player.

The choice of having the Serbian at the Madrid Open, however, is not in the hands of the tournament director. Feliciano Lopez, however, explains that the choice of having Djokovic in his men's draw does not depend on the tournament, but on the rules dictated by the state to which that tournament belongs.

“As a tournament, we don't have the power to decide who can come and who can't. People enter countries not because of what tennis tournaments say, but because of the laws that exist at that moment, which are not imposed by a tournament or federation,” said Feliciano Lopez.

Renowned coach Patrick Mouratoglou has described Djokovic's Covid-19 vaccine stance as "courageous" and believes the Serb's choice illustrates why he is a great champion.

"He now knows that not being vaccinated puts him at risk of not becoming the greatest player of all time," Mouratoglou continued. "And knowing that, he says - 'I keep my line, I'm not gonna get vaccinated.'

Unfortunately, we live in a world where we don't respect the belief of the people so much, and I think it's a great asset to stick to what you deeply believe. He doesn't believe in vaccination, which again, is his right."

Mouratoglou also addressed the negative reaction Novak Djokovic could face from fans during matches due to his vaccine status. "He has a lot of people against him," Mouratoglou said. "And we know that for the top athletes it's very difficult to have a lot of people against you because you are competing in stadiums. The role of the crowd is the key, it's natural to want to be loved and embraced by the crowd."