Novak Djokovic seeks exemption to play in Indian Wells and Miami Open in the US

Novak Djokovic and his team have requested the US authorities for the legendary tennis player to be allowed into the country for the first two ATP Masters events of the year.

The Indian Wells Masters and the Miami Open are set to be held in March. However, since the country still requires foreign travelers to produce proof of vaccination against COVID-19 to enter, the Serbian star, currently unvaccinated, cannot compete in the events. A few days ago, the US government announced that the restrictions will be lifted soon, but only on 11 May 2023.

Speaking to Serbian news agency Tanjug, the 35-year-old player's younger brother Djordje expressed his astonishment at the fact that America was still following strict protocols. He also revealed that the World No. 1's team has submitted the required documents seeking exemption and is hoping for a positive answer.

“Unfortunately, it is something that is out of our hands," Djordje said. "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."

"There are a few days left until the decision, we are hoping for a positive outcome," he added.

While Djokovic has won the BNP Paribas Open five times, he has lifted the trophy as many as six times in Miami. The last time he played in both tournaments was in 2019 and missed all the events in the US last year, including the US Open, due to his stance on vaccination.

The 22-time Grand Slam winner is expected to play at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, beginning on February 27, but only if he recovers from the hamstring injury that he picked up in Australia last month.

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Indian Wells director hopes Novak Djokovic is allowed to enter US in March

Novak Djokovic won the 2023 Australian Open

During the 2023 Australian Open last month, Indian Wells tournament director Tommy Haas remarked that it would be a "disgrace" if Novak Djokovic wasn't allowed to play in the Sunshine Double in March. Haas hoped that the authorities would end the current emergency declarations sooner than planned.

“Obviously the one problem being that he still cannot come to the US as they’re supposed to lift those mandates by mid-April. It would be nice to see if we could maybe lift those a little earlier and have him come to play Indian Wells and Miami,” Haas said.

“I think he wants to play, so we should give him the chance,” he added. “Hopefully, we can have him there. I mean, it would be a disgrace in my eyes if he wasn’t coming to these events, or not allowed to come.”

Meanwhile, the Serb is part of the entry list released for the Indian Wells Open -- the same as last year, where he eventually had to pull out of the tournament at the last minute due to the vaccine mandate.