After Wimbledon, one of the most important tournaments in professional tennis, decided to exclude Russian tennis players from its 2022 edition and Belarusians for the war in Ukraine, one of the most recognized players on the men's circuit has come out to give his opinion. Serbian Novak Djokovic, who is currently number one in the ATP ranking, declared that the organizers' decision is “crazy”.
“I have always condemned war, being a child of war myself (...), but I cannot support the decision of the Wimbledon tournament, which I consider to be crazy,” he told the press after his debut at the Serbian Open, an ATP 250 event taking place in Belgrade.
Nole, who is the reigning champion of the contest and has won the trophy six times in the grass of the All England Club, (2011, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019 and 2021), added that athletes should not be blamed for what happened: “Tennis players, athletes have nothing to do with what happens. It's never good when politics gets into sports.”
“I know how much emotional trauma it leaves. In Serbia we all know what happened in 1999. The Balkans have had many wars in recent history. However, I can't support Wimbledon's decision, I think it's crazy,” said the 34-year-old.
The Grand Slam on turf is the first tennis tournament to prohibit tennis players from these two countries, a measure that affects several men's and women's tennis figures, such as number two in the men's world, Daniil Medvedev; and the fourth ranked women's ranking, Aryna Sabalenka, among others. They will not be able to participate in the tournament that will be played from June 27 to July 10.
The decision taken by the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) has been criticized by the ATP and WTA. This is the first time that players have been banned for reasons of nationality since the era immediately following World War II, when German and Japanese players were excluded. However, the EFTA said it would “consider and respond accordingly” if circumstances change between now and June.
It is not ruled out that this decisive determination could be extended to the other three Grand Slam tournaments that remain to be played in 2022, in addition to the fact that the International Federation (ITF) has banned teams from both countries from participating in the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup (former Fed Cup), competitions won by the Russian teams in 2021. What is also likely, is that the exclusion will also apply in this year's British grass tournaments that serve as preparation for Wimbledon, such as Queen's or Eastbourne.
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