Novak Djokovic has confirmed that the Monte Carlo Masters will very likely be his next tournament in case he is not allowed to compete at the Masters events in Indian Wells and Miami. On Friday, Florida senator Rick Scott tweeted that Djokovic’s application to be granted special permission to enter the United States has been denied.
ð¨ BREAKING: We have been told that @DHSgov just denied @DjokerNole‘s vaccine waiver request, making him ineligible to compete in the US next week in CA & in the @MiamiOpen. @JoeBiden must fix this NOW, grant the waiver & allow him to compete here in the states.
https://t.co/TSD10yM8u6 — Rick Scott (@SenRickScott) March 3, 2023
Djokovic, who hasn’t been vaccinated against COVID-19, cannot enter the United States as an unvaccinated foreigner. Last month, Djokovic revealed that he asked the United States authorities to grant him special permission to enter the country.
“If there’s no America, I guess I’ll play clay. Monte-Carlo is probably the next tournament. If that’s the case, I’ll take some time off, I’ll prepare. Clay, as we’ve said, is the most demanding surface. It takes time more than any other surface to prepare for,” Djokovic said.
No Djokovic in Indian Wells
Djokovic, 35, is a five-time champion in Indian Wells. Djokovic’s last Indian Wells appearance came in 2019, when he picked up a shock defeat against Philipp Kohlschreiber. Last week, Djokovic couldn’t come to Indian Wells due to his vaccine stance.
Earlier this year, Indian Wells tournament director Tommy Haas said it “would be a disgrace” if Djokovic missed the Masters event in the desert again. “Obviously, the one problem being that he still cannot come to the U.S.
If he doesn’t play Indian Wells and Miami in March (it will be tough), they’re supposed to lift those mandates by mid-April. It would be nice to see if we could maybe lift those a little earlier and have him come to play Indian Wells and Miami.
I think he wants to play, so we should give him the chance. Hopefully, we can have him there. I mean, it would be a disgrace in my eyes if he wasn’t coming to these events, or not allowed to come,” Haas said in January.
