Novak Djokovic Was 'Ready To Abandon His Career' With Vaccine Decision Says Ex-Coach
NewsFriday, 28 March 2025 at 13:51
Novak Djokovic was "ready to abandon his career" when he made the decision not to get vaccinated, according to his former coach Goran Ivanisevic.
The COVID-19 pandemic was a challenging period for everyone around the world. It was a period when the world was presented with a new challenge, and seemingly no one knew how to deal with it.
At one point, the vaccine seemed like the solution, but even though many were willing to get vaccinated, there were some who didn't want to. Everyone had their reasons.
One of those who didn't want to get vaccinated was Novak Djokovic. That decision cost the Serbian legend when it comes to the titles won and weeks spent as the World No. 1, but in the eyes of many, it further strengthened his legacy.
Many criticized Djokovic for the decision, but many also praised him for choosing what he perceived was right for him. Looking back on that period a few years later, it's clear that the 24-time major winner could have had more Grand Slam titles to his name if he had been allowed to compete in all countries during the pandemic.
At the same time, that period showed that he wanted to go his own path and he wasn't influenced by anything that was said about him. His former coach, Goran Ivanisevic, recently talked to Slaven Bilic, as per Tennis365, looking back on that period.
"Novak refused the vaccine, ready to abandon his career, a decision no other elite athlete would do. The world condemned him, criticized him relentlessly, even belittled him for standing firm. Yet he never wavered, standing firm in his conviction with a determination that still resonates."
"Now we are talking about those vaccines, and they say that some of them caused problems. We were locked up like sheep for three years, and we were manipulated."
During the interview, Ivanisevic emphasized one thing. While Djokovic didn't want to get vaccinated, he never told anyone else not to get vaccinated. Everyone in his team was vaccinated, according to Ivanisevic.
"It was during the pandemic when he refused to get vaccinated. He said publicly several times that it was a decision he was making for his body, that he knew his body best, and that he didn’t want to do that."
"And he was ready to end his career for this reason. He went all the way just to not get vaccinated. He never told anyone not to get vaccinated, he never told us not to get vaccinated. We all got vaccinated. He never did that in his life."
One of the reasons why Djokovic was criticized was that he held a tournament, called the Adria Tour, during the pandemic. However, Ivanisevic revealed that he gave an option to all the players to get vaccinated before that tournament.
"He organized a tournament in Belgrade, he facilitated the vaccination of other players, but he did not get vaccinated and, for this reason, he was criticized."
That period now seems to be history, and Djokovic is focusing on creating even more legacy. He's been breaking records left and right in Miami, and he will try to break another one by reaching the final at the 2025 Miami Open. His opponent will be Grigor Dimitrov.
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