Novak Djokovic officially withdraws from 2022 US Open

Novak Djokovic has officially withdrawn from the 2022 US Open, which gets underway in New York on August 29.

The three-time champion took to social media on Thursday to make the announcement.

"Sadly, I will not be able to travel to NY this time for US Open. Thank you #NoleFam for your messages of love and support. Good luck to my fellow players! I’ll keep in good shape and positive spirit and wait for an opportunity to compete again. See you soon tennis world!" he tweeted.

The Serbian's participation in the year's final Grand Slam has been the subject of debate and discussion over the last few weeks. This is the second Major that Djokovic will miss this season, following his deportation from Australia hours before the Australian Open began.

Besides the two Slams, his decision not to get vaccinated against the coronavirus meant that he's also missed a few other tournaments, most recently the Canadian Open and the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati.

The 35-year-old has gone on record previously stating that missing the event at Flushing Meadows is "not the end of the world" for him.

"I have my stance, and I am proponent always for freedom to choose what is best for you. And I respect everything and everybody, and I expect at least people to respect my decision. If I have a permission, I'll be there. If I don't, I'll not be there. It's not the end of the world," he said, speaking at the unveiling of a tennis complex in Visoko.

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What next for Novak Djokovic?

Novak Djokovic has confirmed his participation in the 2022 Laver Cup.

With Novak Djokovic pulling out of the 2022 US Open, he will next be seen on the professional circuit during Serbia's Davis Cup group stage tie on September 13 in Valencia, Spain.

After that, the 21-time Grand Slam champion will take compete in the highly-awaited Laver Cup, which is scheduled to be held in London from September 23-25. He is set to team up with Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Murray for the first time, making it one of the year's most hotly anticipated events.

However, both the Davis Cup and the Laver Cup carry no ranking points, despite being ATP-certified events.

His next ranking event could be one of three - the Sofia Open in Bulgaria, the Korea Open in Seoul, and the Tel Aviv Watergen Open. Then there's the Japan Open in Tokyo, an ATP 500 event in October where he is expected to compete.

While there are a few ATP 250 events later on, notably in Italy, Belgium, Sweden, and Austria, it's too early to know if he will take part in any of those.

The former World No. 1 could also take part in the Swiss Indoors tournament in Basel, starting on October 24, where Roger Federer is also scheduled to take part.

After being forced to skip the Masters 1000 events in Toronto and Cincinnati and with the Shanghai Masters canceled, he should be in action at the Paris Masters, where he is the defending champion. The tournament is scheduled for October 31 to November 6.

Then comes the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin, which will be held from November 13-20. Djokovic is currently ranked 13th in the race to qualify for the event, where only the top eight players of the season will take part.

Also Checkout:- US Open 2022 Results