Novak Djokovic still doesn’t know if he can enter the United States for the US Open, but his coach, Goran Ivanisevic, doesn’t think his chances of winning the event are huge.
Ivanisevic looks very serious, but he’s known as a laid-back individual who likes to joke around often. While his on-court persona has been quite fiery, the Croatian has mellowed over the years, becoming very soft-spoken.
In a recent chat with the media, Ivanisevic shared his thoughts about the upcoming US Open and Novak Djokovic, whom he still coaches.
According to Ivanisevic, he’s not too bullish on Djokovic’s chances of winning the US Open, joking that he has a better chance of winning the upcoming Croatian Open in Umag, provided he gets an invitation to the event from the tournament director Tomislav Poljak, which is obviously not realistic.
That's probably also why the Croatian used the comparison, trying to explain how unlikely Djokovic's participation at the US Open likely is at the moment, given the circumstances.
"I am more optimistic that I will win Umag if I get an invitation from Tomislav [Poljak, tournament director], than Djokovic will triumph at the US Open."
There are certainly some big obstacles standing between Djokovic and the US Open trophy. The main one is simply entering the country because, per the current rules set out by the US government, Djokovic, as an unvaccinated foreign national, can’t enter the country.
The Serbian has been quite adamant about not getting vaccinated, so he can’t really enter unless the US government changes its policy or grants him some kind of exemption, neither of which seems likely.
Therefore, for the time being, Ivanisevic seems to be right. Whether something changes in the upcoming weeks remains to be seen, but both Ivanisevic and Djokovic would gladly accept it.