LONDON (AP) —
Novak Djokovic is still awaiting word on whether he will be allowed to return to the Australian Open in January after missing the tournament this year
because he is not vaccinated against COVID-19.
"It's really not in my hands right now," Djokovic said Thursday
at the Laver Cup. "So I'm hoping I will get some positive news."
Djokovic is a 21-time Grand Slam champion — a total that stands second among men, behind only Rafael Nadal's 22 and
one ahead of Roger Federer's 20 — and he has won a record nine of those trophies at Melbourne Park.
But he was deported from Australia last January after a 10-day legal saga that culminated with his visa being revoked; he originally was granted an exemption to strict vaccination rules by two medical panels and Tennis Australia in order to play in the Australian Open.
The 35-year-old Djokovic, who is from Serbia, has insisted he will not get the shots against the illness caused by the coronavirus, even if it means missing tennis events.