“Follow the Rules”: Former Coach Boris Becker on Novak Djokovic’s Australian Open 2022 Participation

In every way, the 2021 ATP tour has been a stupendous run for world no.1 Novak Djokovic, who not only won three Grand Slam titles but also showed his dominance on the Masters 1000 tournaments as well.

Just when everyone expected the Serb to skip the rest of the 2021 season after the US Open final heart-break, Djokovic decided to surprise one and all by bouncing back stronger to clinch the Paris Masters.

Even though his run at the ATP Finals was cut short by Alexander Zverev in the semis, the Serbian star is the player to beat at the 2022 Australian Open as it has been the case over the past few years.

Tennis – ATP Finals – Pala Alpitour, Turin, Italy – November 15, 2021 Serbia’s Novak Djokovic in action during his group stage match against Norway’s Casper Ruud REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane

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Boris Becker opens up about Novak Djokovic playing 2022 Australian Open

But, the surprise surrounding his entry into the first major of the year continues to be an issue of discussion amongst tennis fans. Now, former coach Boris Becker expressed his opinion on Djokovic’s participation at the ‘happy slam‘.

“I can’t imagine that he won’t play in Australia. He loves the sport too much for that, he loves tennis history too much for that. He wants to reach the 21 Grand Slam wins. Australia is his best Grand Slam. He has already won nine times there. Why shouldn’t he win a 10th time?”, Becker said in a German podcast.

The three-time Grand Slam champion continued, “But if he wants to play on the tennis tour, then you just have to follow the rules. That means you have to be vaccinated in order to play”.

So far, there is no confirmation from Djokovic regarding his participation at the Australian Open. When asked about the same at the ATP Finals in Turin, the Serb replied, “We’ll see”.

Tennis Australia announced a massive lineup of events before the start of  ‘Happy Slam’

“I haven’t been talking to them. I was just waiting to hear what the news it going to be. Now that I know, we’ll just have to wait and see”, expressed Djokovic.

On the other hand, the Australian Open organizers announced the list of tournaments to be played, starting with the ATP Cup in Sydney on January 1st.

Get set for a MASSIVE summer of tennis.

https://t.co/UJNVZXE5OZ #AusOpen #AO2022 pic.twitter.com/y7M4BII86s

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) November 25, 2021

Excluding the team event(ATP Cup), tennis Australia planned four 250 tournaments that are scheduled to take place in Melbourne, Adelaide, and Sydney. Also, fans are expected to be present but that might change owing to the restrictions imposed by the government.

Also read: Davis Cup 2019 Heartbreak Still Burns in Novak Djokovic’s Memory

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