Unvaccinated Djokovic denied entry to US for tournament

FILE – Novak Djokovic of Serbia plays a backhand return to Andrey Rublev of Russia during their quarterfinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023. Djokovic broke the record for the most time spent at No. 1 in the professional tennis rankings by a man or woman, beginning his 378th week in the ATP’s top spot on Monday, Feb. 27, 2023, to surpass Steffi Graf’s 377 leading the WTA. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

INDIAN WELLS, Calif. (AP) — Top-ranked Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the upcoming BNP Paribas Open, having lost his bid to enter the United States unvaccinated to play in the Southern California event.

The tournament announced his withdrawal on Sunday night. Play in the combined ATP-WTA event begins Wednesday at Indian Wells Tennis Garden and runs through March 19.

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., said on Twitter that Homeland Security had rejected Djokovic’s vaccine waiver request, which would have allowed him to play back-to-back at Indian Wells and Miami, which runs March 19-April 2.

The U.S. is ending its COVID-19 emergency declaration on May 11, which will allow foreign air travelers to enter the county without being vaccinated.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion lost in the semifinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships on Friday.

With Djokovic out, Nikoloz Basilashvili moved into the Indian Wells draw.

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