Andy Murray says Novak Djokovic's situation is 'really bad' for tennis with players 'shocked'
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Updated 09/01/2022 at 13:08 GMT
Andy Murray has become the latest high-profile tennis player to speak out about Novak Djokovic being barred from entering Australia. The top-ranked Serb is awaiting a hearing to determine if he will be deported and Murray says the drawn-out saga is "really bad" for tennis. Murray also says fellow players have been "shocked" by the uncertainty of whether Djokovic can compete at the Australian Open.
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Andy Murray says fellow tennis players have been left ”shocked” by the uncertainty surrounding Novak Djokovic’s entry into Australia and that the situation is ”really bad” for tennis.
Murray became the latest high-profile tennis player to speak out about Djokovic, who has spent four nights in an Australian immigration detention hotel after his visa was cancelled when he landed in Melbourne.
Djokovic had been granted a medical exemption by the local state government to compete in the Australian Open, but federal border officials deemed that he didn’t meet the entry requirements. All foreign visitors to Australia must be either fully vaccinated against Covid-19 or have a medical exemption.
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Djokovic has appealed the decision and will get a hearing on Monday that should determine whether he can compete at the Grand Slam tournament, where he is a nine-time winner and the defending champion.
“I think everyone is shocked by it to be honest,” Murray said when asked how other players view the situation.
“I’m going to say two things on it just now,” Murray added, according to Australian newspaper The Age. ”The first thing is that I hope that Novak is OK. I know him well, and I’ve always had a good relationship with him and I hope that he’s OK.
“The second thing I’ll say on it ... it’s really not good for tennis at all, and I don’t think it’s good for anyone involved.
I think it’s really bad.
Murray is in Australia to warm up for the year’s first major, where he has lost in the final five times. Four of those losses came to Djokovic, although he defeated the Serb to win the 2012 U.S. Open and the 2013 Wimbledon final.
The former world No. 1 said he hasn’t spoken to Djokovic and that he doesn’t want to draw too many conclusions before getting all the facts.
“[I need to] wait and hear exactly what the situation is before commenting on it further, because again I don’t think it’s fair because some of it is speculation,” Murray said. “Some stuff has come out that really doesn’t look good, either. I want to hear all the facts first before giving all of my thoughts on it.”
Rafael Nadal has previously said Djokovic could have easily avoided the current situation by getting vaccinated, and Murray also said the Serb would have been better off trusting the scientific advice.
“It’s not for him to say what the right thing to do is, but to listen to the experts on those subjects, and I feel the same,” Murray said. “I can accept that young healthy athletes (would think) if you contract coronavirus (you) are probably going to be OK. But I trust what I’m getting told by the scientists and the doctors.
“It’s not about listening to what politicians or government are telling me to do, it’s more listening to the doctors and the scientists, and the people that really know about that stuff.”
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