"It's his right to try when it's valid" - Tennis fans slam journalist who asked Novak Djokovic to avoid playing victim

On Friday, February 10, Novak Djokovic raised a request with the US authorities to grant him an exemption and allow him to enter the country in March for the Indian Wells and Miami Masters tournaments. A journalist commented on that news, suggesting that Djokovic should refrain from playing the victim card, and now fans have fans reacted to the journalist with fury.The US government is set to lift all the COVID-19 restrictions on May 11. Until then, Djokovic cannot travel to the country since he has opted against getting the vaccine. The Indian Wells and Miami Open events will be held in March, meaning the 35-year-old will have to give them a miss like last year.Tennis journalist Jon Wertheim stated on Saturday that the player was in control of the situation and should avoid acting like a victim.&quot;We all want body autonomy and free choice. It’s his choice not to get vaccinated and accept the consequences. Fine. We should respect that….But then stay out of the victimization lane,&quot; Wertheim tweeted.Jon Wertheim@jon_wertheimYeah this is what gets me as well… We all want body autonomy and free choice. It’s his choice not to get vaccinated and accept the consequences. Fine. We should respect that….But then stay out of the victimization lane…. twitter.com/schneideur/sta…Drew@Schneideur@jon_wertheim Main takeaway from the last year and a half is that it's Novak's choice to not be eligible to play. People should stop acting like he isn't in control of the situation.40622@jon_wertheim Main takeaway from the last year and a half is that it's Novak's choice to not be eligible to play. People should stop acting like he isn't in control of the situation.Yeah this is what gets me as well… We all want body autonomy and free choice. It’s his choice not to get vaccinated and accept the consequences. Fine. We should respect that….But then stay out of the victimization lane…. twitter.com/schneideur/sta…But fans soon defended the Serb, explaining to Wertheim what an 'exemption' meant. They added that the player was ready to accept whatever the outcome was, and that accusing him of playing the victim card was wrong.&quot;What victimization lane should he stay out of? If you’re talking about that politicized farce in Australia &amp; the subsequent media diatribe mostly devoid of facts, he was a victim. What exactly is your problem with him availing himself of an exemption process? You sound put upon,&quot; a fan tweeted.Cookie 🐊@RahfuciousWhat victimization lane should he stay out of? If you’re talking about that politicized farce in Australia &amp; the subsequent media diatribe mostly devoid of facts, he was a victim. What exactly is your problem with him availing himself of an exemption process?! You sound put upon. twitter.com/jon_wertheim/s…671What victimization lane should he stay out of? If you’re talking about that politicized farce in Australia &amp; the subsequent media diatribe mostly devoid of facts, he was a victim. What exactly is your problem with him availing himself of an exemption process?! You sound put upon. twitter.com/jon_wertheim/s…&quot;Jon - most likely Indian Wells tournament organizers encouraged him to apply and even are aiding in this process. And you yourself mentioned that there are possible exemption pathways. As a responsible journalist, you surely can do so much better. How is he acting victim?&quot; a user wrote.Sehrawat@sehrawat_7@jon_wertheim Jon - most likely Indian Wells tournament organisers encouraged him to apply and even are aiding in this process. And you yourself mentioned that there are possible exemption pathways. As a responsible journalist you surely can do so much better. How is he acting victim ?223@jon_wertheim Jon - most likely Indian Wells tournament organisers encouraged him to apply and even are aiding in this process. And you yourself mentioned that there are possible exemption pathways. As a responsible journalist you surely can do so much better. How is he acting victim ?😂&quot;Perfectly legal for him to apply for visa exemption. He’s perfectly fine with accepting the outcome either way, as you know. To suggest that he’s ‘playing the victim’ is disingenuous, as you also know,&quot; another tweet read.Colleen@Colleen42221662@jon_wertheim Perfectly legal for him to apply for visa exemption. He’s perfectly fine with accepting the outcome either way, as you know. To suggest that he’s ‘playing the victim’ is disingenuous, as you also know.72@jon_wertheim Perfectly legal for him to apply for visa exemption. He’s perfectly fine with accepting the outcome either way, as you know. To suggest that he’s ‘playing the victim’ is disingenuous, as you also know.Here are some more reactions:Monasty Craze@robinahoody@jon_wertheim If you have a problem with the law of your country, it is not Novak's problem. He is exercising his right to apply for entry in accordance with the RULES AND LAW. You have to advocate against your country's regulations that you oppose. He is free to fight for his right to party.731@jon_wertheim If you have a problem with the law of your country, it is not Novak's problem. He is exercising his right to apply for entry in accordance with the RULES AND LAW. You have to advocate against your country's regulations that you oppose. He is free to fight for his right to party.Novak Goat 🎉@novak_goat@jon_wertheim This is a matter of politics! How can he play in Australia, France, Italy, Great Britain and not in the USA? Does that make sense!? He can try to apply for an exemption. If approved, fine. If not, fine.281@jon_wertheim This is a matter of politics! How can he play in Australia, France, Italy, Great Britain and not in the USA? Does that make sense!? He can try to apply for an exemption. If approved, fine. If not, fine.Shobhit@NovakGOATovicWhat victimisation lane? He will accept &amp; move on if the exemption request is denied. What will be unacceptable is that they grant the exception &amp; then create a scene like Australia did. Then he is a victim because then he actually is one. twitter.com/jon_wertheim/s…Jon Wertheim@jon_wertheimYeah this is what gets me as well… We all want body autonomy and free choice. It’s his choice not to get vaccinated and accept the consequences. Fine. We should respect that….But then stay out of the victimization lane…. twitter.com/schneideur/sta…412Yeah this is what gets me as well… We all want body autonomy and free choice. It’s his choice not to get vaccinated and accept the consequences. Fine. We should respect that….But then stay out of the victimization lane…. twitter.com/schneideur/sta…What victimisation lane? He will accept &amp; move on if the exemption request is denied. What will be unacceptable is that they grant the exception &amp; then create a scene like Australia did. Then he is a victim because then he actually is one. twitter.com/jon_wertheim/s…Whit.J@Whitnee_JJ@jon_wertheim Huh? What does him applying for an exemption have to do with victimization? Sounds like you are projecting here.352@jon_wertheim Huh? What does him applying for an exemption have to do with victimization? Sounds like you are projecting here.Thasneem@Thasnee2000@jon_wertheim Jon, your supposedly an educated man, right? When the vaccin has proved to be a farce, when health authorities themselves endorse lifting the controls, why in the world should he not appeal? His job is to play tennis. It's his right to try when it's valid to do so.242@jon_wertheim Jon, your supposedly an educated man, right? When the vaccin has proved to be a farce, when health authorities themselves endorse lifting the controls, why in the world should he not appeal? His job is to play tennis. It's his right to try when it's valid to do so.divyansh@DivKaush2007Unvaccinated americans can travel anywhere in the world but unvaccinated foreign nationals cannot enter the USA. It is unfair. He won't care if his request is denied, but if a scene is created after granting him passage, that's how he'll be the victim of another clown show. twitter.com/jon_wertheim/s…Jon Wertheim@jon_wertheimYeah this is what gets me as well… We all want body autonomy and free choice. It’s his choice not to get vaccinated and accept the consequences. Fine. We should respect that….But then stay out of the victimization lane…. twitter.com/schneideur/sta…173Yeah this is what gets me as well… We all want body autonomy and free choice. It’s his choice not to get vaccinated and accept the consequences. Fine. We should respect that….But then stay out of the victimization lane…. twitter.com/schneideur/sta…Unvaccinated americans can travel anywhere in the world but unvaccinated foreign nationals cannot enter the USA. It is unfair. He won't care if his request is denied, but if a scene is created after granting him passage, that's how he'll be the victim of another clown show. twitter.com/jon_wertheim/s…Noellekingusa@noellekingusa1@Schneideur @jon_wertheim You’re right. He chose to remain unvaxed. I understand his reasons, but this playing the victim card accusation is ludicrous. If there’s a chance to play he’ll go for it. It’s ridiculous that people have an issue with this. If allowed in (b4 May) blame those giving exemptions!4@Schneideur @jon_wertheim You’re right. He chose to remain unvaxed. I understand his reasons, but this playing the victim card accusation is ludicrous. If there’s a chance to play he’ll go for it. It’s ridiculous that people have an issue with this. If allowed in (b4 May) blame those giving exemptions!Novak Djokovic's brother hopes for a positive answer after submitting exemption requestNovak Djokovic won the 2023 Australian OpenIn a conversation with Serbian news agency Tanjug, Novak Djokovic's younger brother Djordje remarked that their team had submitted the necessary documents and were hopeful of a favorable answer soon.“Unfortunately, it is something that is out of our hands,&quot; Djordje said. &quot;Novak needs to get a special permission to enter, considering that the USA still doesn’t let unvaccinated foreigners into the country, which is unbelievable, considering that we have seen big sporting manifestations with unvaccinated athletes throughout the world.&quot;&quot;There are a few days left until the decision, we are hoping for a positive outcome,&quot; he added.

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