Djokovic Dropped From Two Tournaments Over Vaxx Status

Novak Djokovic is set to miss two more tournaments this year over his unvaccinated status.

The formerly ranked No. 1 men's tennis player is set to miss the Indian Wells and Miami ATP Masters 1000 tournaments due to the U.S. and CDC's traveling restrictions for unvaccinated international visitors.

Djokovic officially withdrew from the 2022 BNP Paribas (alternately entitled the "Indian Wells Masters") after being scheduled for a main event match on Tuesday.

“While I was automatically listed in the BNP Paribas Open and Miami Open draw I knew it would be unlikely I’d be able to travel,” Djokovic stated on Twitter. “The CDC has confirmed that regulations won’t be changing so I won’t be able to play in the US. Good luck to those playing in these great tournaments.”

This marks Djokovic's third missed tournament this year. His first came in January at the Australia Open — which sparked a weeks-long international dilemma as the Serbian was detained by the state government of Victoria over insufficient proof of vaccination.

Djokovic was detained days leading up to the start of the Open and was later forced to fly out of the country without playing in the tournament.

His absence at the Open led to a victory by Rafael Nadal, who is now the all-time leader in Grand Slam titles (21). Djokovic and Roger Federer were tied with Nadal at 20 each before Nadal's win at the Open.

The U.S. Tennis Association did not comment on Djokovic's exclusion from the two U.S. events — instead using the government's ruling on COVID restrictions as precedent for the event, according to the ESPN report.

The Miami Open is scheduled to begin on March 21.

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