French Open Organisers Say Novak Djokovic Can Defend Title
French Open organisers said on Wednesday that Novak Djokovic is allowed to defend his Roland Garros title as the tournament prepares to stage the first Grand Slam, without any COVID-19 related restrictions since the pandemic began.
France lifted restrictions in almost all public spaces – except hospitals, nursing homes and public transports – on Monday. This means the Roland Garros stadium should be operating at full capacity as Djokovic would be aiming to make a statement on the clay courts.
“As things stand, nothing stands in the way of Djokovic taking part in the French Open,” tournament director Amelie Mauresmo told said on Wednesday.
The 20-time Grand Slam winner was unable to defend his Australian Open title in January after he was deported from the country. There was public outburst after Djokovic was initially admitted to the tournament, despite not being vaccinated against COVID-19.
Djokovic, 34, is also out of this month’s ATP 1000 tournament at Indian Wells and Miami as he is unable to enter the United States without a proof of vaccination.
As a proof of vaccination would not be required to enter France or any sporting event in the country, French tennis federation (FFT) president Gilles Moretton, warned that things could change before the tournament starts on May 22.
“There’s still a virus circulating and we have to be cautious. If things were to happen again and the government would take new measures we would not be excluded from these measures,” Moretton said.
Moretton was optimistic that the Roland Garros stadium would be full after the 2020 and 2021 editions were hit by COVID-19.
“We started selling tickets on March 8 and 500,000 of the 600,000 have already been sold,” Moretton added. “Out of the 150,000 tickets for the night sessions, 100,000 have been sold.”
Chidi Nwoke/Reuters/Roland Garros.
