Because to US coronavirus guidelines, Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the Indian Wells and Miami Open, the first two Masters Series events of the year. Non-US citizens must obtain a Covid vaccination before entering the country, according to regulations.
Last month, Serb Djokovic, 34, informed the BBC that he had not been inoculated.
The 20 time Grand Slam winner was in the draw for both events, but later tweeted that he understood it was “unlikely” that he would be able to attend.
In April, he’ll most likely return to the tour in the Monte Carlo Masters.
The Indian Wells draw will be less balanced as a result of Djokovic’s late withdrawal. He was seeded second.
Last year’s semi finalist Grigor Dimitrov will take Djokovic’s spot in the draw as the next player to be seeded outside the tournament’s top 32.
In due order, a lucky loser from qualifying will take the Bulgarian’s place.
Djokovic missed the Australian Open in January when his visa was revoked by the country’s government due to a dispute regarding his vaccination status.
In a recent discussion with journalists, he stated that he is willing to miss other major events in the future.
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“Any title or anything else is less essential than the principles of decision making on my body,” he remarked.
“I’m attempting to be as in tune with my body as possible.”
Djokovic was overtaken in the list of overall major championships by eventual winner Rafael Nadal, who won a record 21st Grand Slam by skipping the Australian Open.
Djokovic’s first competition of 2022 was in Dubai in February, where he was upset in the quarterfinals by Czech Jiri Vesely.
Due to his defeat, he lost his world number one ranking to Russian Daniil Medvedev, who won his first major victory at the US Open in September and is the top seed at Indian Wells this week.
