Serb defends freedom of choice in latest CBS 60 Minutes interview
Novak Djokovic is already thinking about next season and his challenge to win the title of the Australian Open, which would put more distance between him and Rafael Nadal in the race for more ‘Grand Slam’.
The world number one, in his latest interview for the CBS 60 Minutes programme, spoke of his refusal to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, which caused him to miss many tournaments, and made it clear that “people tried to brand me as anti-vaccine when I’m not. I am in favour of vaccines in the same way that I am in favour of freedom of choice.
The tournaments that Djokovic missed for not being vaccinated
* Australian Open 2022
* Indian Wells 2022
* Miami 2022
* Canada 2022
* Cincinnati 2022
* US Open 2022
* Indian Wells 2023
* Miami 2023
Djokovic also spoke about his rivalry with Nadal and Roger Federer, with whom he formed the historic ‘Big Three’ of the sport: “I have enormous respect for them, that’s what I can say. We are not friends because we are rivals and you can’t share certain things that could go against you. I would love to be able to have dinner with Rafa and Roger in a while”.
Pre-season in Dubai
The 24-time major champion, who rested for a few days at his home in Marcella at the end of the Davis Cup finals in Malaga, will spend his pre-season in Dubai with his compatriot Hamad Medjedovic, the recent winner of the Next Gen Finals in Jeddah.
He will then travel to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) to play an exhibition with Carlos Alcaraz on 27 December. It will be a technical stop on his way to Australia. He will play the United Cup in defence of Serbia. The venue for the Balkan team’s matches will be Perth.
Novak Djokovic will open on December 31 against China’s Zhizhen Zhang.
