With the summer hard-court swing just around the corner, tennis fans far and wide are wondering if Serbian great Novak Djokovic will be able to participate in the USA and Canada.
One of the tournaments which could see itself without the all-time legend would, of course, be the US Open. However, the Masters 1000 event in Montreal may also be without the Serb.
What with lingering COVID-19 restrictions in place for foreign nationals in both of the mentioned countries, especially for those non-vaccinated, there are serious doubts over whether Djokovic will eventually be a grant to play or whether he will be treated like anyone else who has not received their vaccination.
Following the Canadian Minister of Health coming out to say that the sanitary and entry rules apply to everyone, the Montreal Open tournament director has now had his say, explaining how it will be impossible for 'Nole' to participate in the 1000 event unless he gets the jab.
"Either the Canadian government is going to change the rules regarding vaccination or he is going to roll up his sleeves and get the vaccine. But I don't think any of those scenarios are realistic."
Despite the potential absence of the one of the sport's all-time biggest names, tournament director Eugene Lepierre was keen to stress that the event promises to be one of the best of the tennis calendar:
"We will have a great tournament. All the best players will be there except for two and we know the reasons for their absence."
It is expected that another one of the big names to be missing the Canadian Open will be Alexander Zverev, who is still recovering from an injury he suffered at the 2022 Roland Garros.
Only time will tell whether Djokovic will be let into the North American swing but if he does end up missing this key part of the season, it will be a big blow for his points and consequent ATP ranking.
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