Unvaccinated Novak Djokovic withdraws from Indian Wells amid US visa row

World number one Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the Indian Wells, the organisers announced amid the unvaccinated Serbian’s US visa row.

Djokovic applied for special permission to play at the ATP Masters tournaments – Indian Wells and Miami, but his withdrawal indicates that his application for a Covid-19 vaccine waiver to enter the United States might have failed.

“World No. 1 Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the 2023 BNP Paribas Open. With his withdrawal, Nikoloz Basilashvili moves into the field,” the organisers said in a statement.

No one from Djokovic’s team was immediately available to comment on the withdrawal, Reuters reported.

The US currently bars unvaccinated people from entering the country. The ban, however, is expected to be lifted when the Joe Biden government ends its Covid-19 emergency declarations on May 11.

Djokovic has not participated in the back-to-back ATP Masters events at Indian Wells and Miami, the ‘Sunshine Double’, which are two of the biggest tournaments on the ATP calendar.

Last week, Florida Senators Rick Scott and Marco Rubio wrote a letter to US President Joe Biden, urging him to grant the waiver request. Indian Wells tournament director Tommy Haas, the United States Tennis Association and the US Open also backed the 22-time Grand Slam champion to be allowed to compete in the country.

Djokovic, who was deported from Australia following a 10-day legal battle to play in last year’s Australian Open, missed US Open 2022 for not being vaccinated. The Serbian stated that he would skip Grand Slams instead of taking the Covid shot.

Djokovic returned to Australia in January this year and won his record-extending 10th title in Melbourne after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final.