"He's extremely stubborn in all his ideas, when he believes in something, there is no way one can change his mind"- Marion Bartoli on Novak Djokovic

On the latest episode of the Match Point podcast for Tennis Majors, Marion Bartoli spoke about Novak Djokovic's vaccine stance. Bartoli admitted she was surprised to see the Serb sticking to his guns even after the events that unfolded in Australia.

The World No. 1 revealed in an interview with the BBC that he was prepared to sacrifice the opportunity to win more Grand Slam titles in order to stay true to his principles on vaccines and freedom of choice.

The Serb now faces the prospect of being barred from the remaining Slams, denting his chances of cementing his GOAT status.

Bartoli revealed that she was initially stunned to hear Djokovic's comments because she had read rumors that the Serb was getting vaccinated. However, she said that upon reflection, the World No. 1's stance did not come as too much of a surprise as he has always been a "stubborn" individual.

"I was just very surprised because my initial thought was he's getting vaccinated after all that happened in Australia and that were the rumors I heard. So, to get that complete reverse opinions was a bit of shock to be honest but then reading it through, it sounds like Novak," said Bartoli.

"He's extremely stubborn in all his ideas. When he believes something, then there is just no way one can change his mind, and he believed that injecting something into his body right now would change the way he feels... He doesn't want to take the risk," added the former French player.

Marion Bartoli feels Novak Djokovic will be allowed to play at the French Open and Wimbledon

Novak Djokovic at the Dubai Tennis Championships 2021

Marion Bartoli is confident Novak Djokovic will be allowed to play at the French Open and Wimbledon, with France and the United Kingdom easing some of their COVID-19 restrictions.

The Frenchwoman, however, said she couldn't believe the Serb would be willing to jeopardize his career by staying unvaccinated.

"It's just good time that actually France and England look to take their restrictions away so that he can play those two Grand Slams but no one would have thought three years back, to determine who is going to win the most Grand Slams, he will come down to that," mentioned Bartoli.

"I just can't believe that he's taking the risk and he's willing to take the risk to go through down that path. You know, he has taken a decision and we all have to respect it," concluded the former World No. 7.

Djokovic will kick off his 2022 season at the Dubai Tennis Championships next week.