CANBERRA: Novak Djokovic will not be able to enter Australia to defend his Australian Open title unless he is fully vaccinated for COVID-19, the country’s immigration minister said on Wednesday, putting the Serb’s Grand Slam record bid in doubt.
World number one Djokovic, who is level with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal on 20 Grand Slam titles, has declined to reveal his vaccination status, and said he is unsure if he will defend his Australian Open crown.
Clarifying Australia’s visa requirements, Minister for Immigration Alex Hawke said foreign players would need to have had two vaccination shots to play the Grand Slam at Melbourne Park in January.
“You’ll need to be double vaccinated to visit Australia. That’s a universal application, not just to tennis players. I mean that every visitor to Australia will need to be double vaccinated,” Hawke told Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio.
“I don’t have a message to Novak. I have a message to everybody that wishes to visit Australia. He’ll need to be double vaccinated.”
Apart from Serbian Djokovic, who has won nine of his Grand Slam titles at the Australian Open and the last three in succession at Melbourne Park, the rule could exclude scores of players from the tournament.
More than a third of professional players remain unvaccinated, according to recent media reports.
Both the men’s ATP and women’s WTA tours have urged players to get vaccinated but some have voiced reservations.
Russian men’s US Open champion Daniil Medvedev and German world number four Alex Zverev have expressed skepticism, although their vaccination status remains unknown.
Greek world number three Stefanos Tsitsipas said in August he would only get vaccinated if it became mandatory, though later said he planned to have shots by the end of the year.
Tennis Australia, which organizes the Grand Slam, said it was working with authorities on conditions for players, fans and tournament staff.
“Our understanding is that the details around international visitors entering the country are yet to be decided and we hope to have more information soon,” the governing body said.
Australia’s health minister Greg Hunt said the country’s rules were about protecting Australians.
“They apply to everyone without fear or favor. It doesn’t matter whether you are number one in the world or you are anything else,” he told a media conference on Wednesday.
Australia has shut its international borders to non-citizens and non-permanent residents for 18 months, though there have been some high-profile exceptions.
International travel is expected to begin for Australian citizens within weeks, but non-citizens are expected to be shut out until early-2022.
Authorities in Victoria state, which hosts the Australian Open, said they would not make special deals with unvaccinated athletes to allow them to compete even if they secured visas.
Melbourne, Australia’s second largest city, has been locked down since August due to an outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant but will begin to open up on Friday, when 70 percent of the adult population in Victoria is expected to be fully vaccinated.
Novak Djokovic will need to be vaccinated to defend Australian Open title – minister
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Novak Djokovic will need to be vaccinated to defend Australian Open title – minister
- World number one says he is unsure if he will defend his Australian Open crown
Real Madrid, Zalgiris headline adidas NextGen EuroLeague in Abu Dhabi
- 8 top under-18 teams compete for place in Athens final in May
- Tournament is at city’s Space42 Arena from Feb. 27 to March 1
RIYADH: Abu Dhabi will have Europe’s brightest young basketball talent this week at the adidas NextGen EuroLeague tournament.
Eight of the continent’s leading under-18 teams will compete from Feb. 27 to March 1 at Space42 Arena, with a place at the finals in Athens on the line. The finals in May will be staged alongside the EuroLeague Final Four in the Greek capital.
Defending continental champions Zalgiris Kaunas and five-time title holders Real Madrid headline the Abu Dhabi qualifier, which forms part of the 2025–26 adidas NextGen EuroLeague season.
The eight teams have been divided into two groups of four and will play in a round-robin format. The winners of each group will advance to Sunday’s championship game, while placement fixtures will determine the remaining standings.
The Abu Dhabi event follows the Ulm qualifier, won by U18 Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana, who have already secured their place in Athens. The winners of upcoming tournaments in Bologna (March 13–15) and Belgrade (March 20–22) will complete the finals lineup.
Group A features Real Madrid alongside U18 Aris Thessaloniki, U18 Dubai Basketball and U18 AS Monaco.
Aris enter their third season in the competition, having finished seventh at the Munich qualifier last year with a 2–2 record after placing sixth in Abu Dhabi the previous campaign.
Dubai Basketball are also competing in their third NextGen season. The UAE side finished eighth in Ulm last year with a 0–4 record but claimed a notable win over U18 Mega Super Belgrade at the NextGen Finals.
However, they missed another victory against U18 EA7 Emporio Armani Milan to finish 1–2 overall. Dubai previously hosted a 2024 qualifier, ending with a 1–3 record.
Monaco make their second appearance after an eighth-place finish in Paris in 2024.
Real Madrid, meanwhile, will be aiming to reassert their dominance after an uncharacteristic third-place finish at last season’s Munich qualifier ended a streak of 11 consecutive qualifying tournament victories.
The Spanish powerhouse had also won 19 straight NextGen games dating back to the 2022 finals in Belgrade before falling to Zalgiris in the group stage last year.
Real are the competition’s most successful club with five continental titles (2015, 2019, 2021, 2023 and 2024) and are competing in their 19th consecutive season since 2007–08.
Group B has reigning champions Zalgiris Kaunas take on U18 London Lions, U18 Next Gen Team Abu Dhabi and U18 Valencia Basket. London Lions make their tournament debut as the club continues to expand their European presence.
The Next Gen Team Abu Dhabi compete in their fifth season and second under head coach Dogus Balbay, a two-time EuroLeague champion. He is assisted by former Italian international Massimo Bulleri and Kheeryoung Rhee.
Valencia Basket are making their 10th appearance in the competition and their eighth in succession. The Spanish side have twice reached the finals, in Vitoria-Gasteiz in 2019 and as hosts in 2021, and finished runners-up in Munich last season after three consecutive fifth-place finishes.
Zalgiris, one of the most storied names in the tournament’s history, are appearing in their 24th edition — having featured in every NextGen season since its inception.
The Lithuanian club won the inaugural event in 2003, added another title in 2007 and lifted the trophy again last summer in Abu Dhabi. They also reached the championship game in 2005, 2006 and 2011, underlining their pedigree at youth level.
