Novak Djokovic gets denied entry to the US because he’s unvaccinated for Covid-19

Tennis world number one Novak Djokovic will not compete in the US this month due to being unvaccinated against the coronavirus.

The Serbian sports star failed to get special permission to enter the country ahead of the Indian Wells Masters tournament in California.

Current US entry restrictions related to Covid-19 wind up in April, which means Djokovic will not miss the US Open if he remains unvaccinated.

Considering his staunch refusal to get the Covid-19 vaccination for the 2021 Australian Open, we're going to go out on a limb here and assume that he had no plans to get vaccinated in time for that US competition either.

The Serbian tennis player is one of the most prolific people in the world who have refused to get the vaccine.

He applied to the US government in February to receive a waiver to play at the ATP Masters events at Indian Wells and Miami, but did not succeed in securing the needed permission in time to play, the Daily Mail reports.

The tournament has confirmed Djokovic has pulled out, and has been replaced by Nikoloz Basilashvili.

He is still slated to play the Miami Open, but it seems the ball is well and truly in the US government's court on that one.

Social media users have kicked off over Djokovic's forced absence from the Indian Wells event.

Some have been puzzled by the policy that is still in place in the wake of the pandemic.

Others dubbed it as 'unacceptable' and 'stupid'.

One person said on Twitter: "Literally the healthiest male on the planet…Novak Djokovic…is denied entry into the U.S. due to vaccination status. Unbelievable."

Another commented: "Unacceptable and totally BS that Novak Djokovic is not allowed into the Country to play tennis. We literally have thousands flooding into this Country unchecked but a healthy athlete can't come in?!"

A third added: "One of the fittest men in the world banned from Indian Wells 2023 for not being jabbed. Biden's America is insane."

Even TV host Bill Maher has weighed in, adding: "This country is stuck on stupid, it just is."

The US Open even backed Djokovic coming to America to play at the Indian Wells Masters tournament.

The official Twitter account for the Grand Slam wrote: "Novak Djokovic is one the greatest champions our sport has ever seen.

"The USTA and US Open are hopeful that Novak is successful in his petition to enter the country, and that the fans will be able to see him back in action at Indian Wells and Miami."

Featured Image Credit: Marco Canoniero / Alamy. PA Images / Alamy.

Topics: Coronavirus, Sport, News, US News

Rachel Lang

Rachel Lang is a Digital Journalist at LADbible. During her career, she has interviewed Aussie PM Malcolm Turnbull in the lead up to the 2016 federal election, ran an editorial campaign on the war in Yemen, and reported on homelessness in the lead-up to Harry and Meghan’s wedding in Windsor. She also once wrote a yarn on the cheese and wine version of Fyre Festival.

@rlangjournalist