Novak Djokovic willing to skip French Open and Wimbledon over his vaccine stance, he tells BBC in on-camera interview


Before the Australian Open, Djokovic was tied with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer with 20 grand slam singles titles. With Djokovic absent after having to leave Australia before the tournament, Nadal went on to win the Australian Open, giving him 21 major singles titles — the most all-time in men’s tennis.Djokovic told the BBC, which labeled the interview as an exclusive with the 34-year-old from Serbia, that he has not received any vaccination for Covid-19.”I was never against vaccination,” Djokovic told the BBC. “I understand that globally, everyone is trying to put a big effort into handling this virus and seeing, hopefully, an end soon to this virus.”Djokovic said in the BBC interview that he understands the consequences of his decision to not get vaccinated, explaining that: “I understand that not being vaccinated today I’m unable to travel to most of the tournaments at the moment.””And that’s a price you’re willing to pay?” the BBC’s media editor Amol Rajan asked Djokovic.”That is the price that I’m willing to pay,” Djokovic replied.Rajan then asked Djokovic: “Ultimately, are you prepared to forgo the chance to be the greatest player to ever picked up a racquet statistically because you feel so strongly about this jab?”Visit CNN.com/sport for more news, features, and videos”Yes,” Djokovic said. “I do.”When asked why, Djokovic responded: “Because the principles of decision making on my body are more important than any title or anything else. I’m trying to be in tune with my body as much as I possibly can.”CNN has reached out to tournament organizers for the French Open and Wimbledon for comment.

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