Australian Open: Djokovic is not being blackmailed
The Minister of Sports in the state of Victoria confirmed that the organizers of the Australian Open tennis tournament, the first Grand Slam in the Grand Slam, did not blackmail the Serbian world number one, Novak Djokovic, stressing that the measures taken regarding the Covid-19 pandemic are related to health before anything else.
Djokovic is one big title away from breaking the record he shares with Swiss Roger Federer and Spaniard Rafael Nadal with 20 titles, in the tournament scheduled for next January, but he refuses to reveal whether he received the vaccine or not.
Serdan Djokovic, the father of the Serbian star, revealed that his son may not defend his title in Australia, due to the mandatory vaccination rules against the Corona virus, likening the restrictions to “blackmail” and revealed in an interview with the local “Prada TV” channel, “Of course he desperately wants to go, because he An athlete and there are many of our people, from the (Serbian) community there who would be happy to see Novak."
"But I really don't know if that will happen. Maybe not under these circumstances, with this blackmail and the way things are happening."
Serdan also defended (his son's) "exclusive and personal right" to receive the vaccine or not, noting that even he personally does not know whether Novak received the dose or not.
However, the Minister of Sports in the state of Victoria, where the tournament is being held, Martin Bakula confirmed that he would like “Dioko” to defend his title, but health comes first, and said in this regard, “When you are a visiting tennis player or any other athlete, it is about your responsibility towards The community where you are welcomed. That's why we're asking tennis players to follow the same measures that Victorians do."
"It's not about blackmail at all, it's just that we're trying to protect the Victorian community," he added in response to Novak's father's allegations.
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