In an episode bearing uncomfortable echoes of his abortive attempt to compete at the Australian Open, Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from Indian Wells after Covid regulations left him unable to enter the US.
A day after allowing the draw to go ahead with his name still on the entry list, leaving organisers in a state of confusion over his eligibility to compete, the world No 2 announced he would miss the “sunshine double” of Indian Wells and the Miami Open.
“While I was automatically listed in the @BNPPARIBASOPEN and @MiamiOpen draw I knew it would be unlikely I’d be able to travel,” Djokovic wrote on Twitter. “The CDC has confirmed that regulations won’t be changing so I won’t be able to play in the US. Good luck to those playing in these great tournaments.”
Despite the latter expression of goodwill towards his contemporaries, the 34-year-old’s late withdrawal smacks of indifference.
Unvaccinated travellers need an exemption from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to enter the US. Such dispensations are normally only granted in emergencies or on humanitarian grounds, unless an individual is unable to receive a jab on medical grounds. Djokovic, who has said he is unvaccinated, will have been fully aware of these rules. Yet he delayed his decision to pull out until the last minute regardless, apparently in the misguided hope that the regulations might suddenly change.
Djokovic’s brinkmanship means that, for the second big event in succession, the draw will have to be reshuffled to reflect his absence. Grigor Dimitrov, a semi-finalist in the California desert last year, will take the second-seeded Serb’s position at the foot of the drawsheet, with a lucky loser from qualifying promoted to the main draw.
Andrey Rublev, the world No 7, is the highest seed remaining in the bottom quarter, where Andy Murray will hope to capitalise on Djokovic’s absence now that their potential third-round encounter is off. Meanwhile, top seed Daniil Medvedev, Rafael Nadal and Stefanos Tsitsipas will vie to come through the top half of the draw, which now looks disproportionately strong.
It all feels like the unwanted sequel to a movie you had no wish to see in the first place. Indian Wells may not be a major, but it is widely regarded as one of the most important events on the calendar and – as at the Australian Open, where Djokovic’s visa controversy and eventual deportation created a lopsided draw – the tournament will begin under the shadow of an absent individual.