Former tennis player and coach Roger Rasheed believes Novak Djokovic is all set to feature in the Australian Open despite the strict vaccination rules imposed in Melbourne, Australia. The Australian tennis coach feels that if Djokovic features at the Australian Open, he is most likely to break the Grand Slam record.
Rasheed has been in the tennis scene for a long time now. Ever since retiring as a player he has taken up coaching and coached some sensational talents. The players coached by him include the likes of Lleyton Hewitt, Gael Monfils, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, and Grigor Dimitrov. But recently he has taken a break from coaching and mostly features as a tennis commentator.
However, Djokovic’s participation at the Grand Slam in Down Under remains a major question mark as he has refrained from sharing his vaccination status. Meanwhile, Australia’s immigration minister has clarified that none of the players will be handed visa if they are not fully vaccinated. That leaves the Serb in a very tight spot and puts his participation and Australian Open defence in major jeopardy.
But in a recent interview with SEN Sportsday Rasheed opened up on his feelings regarding the entire as he feels that the Serb will be back for the next year’s Australian Open. “I think it’s a given that (Novak Djokovic) will be here in January,” he said.
He further highlighted how Djokovic is tied on 20 Grand Slams with both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer and will be keen to break that record as soon as possible Hence the Australian Open can be a good place for him to create history.
“He (Novak Djokovic) wants to break the record, it would be brilliant for us to have it in Australia and we’d want to have him break that record here as that’s something that will stand up in world sport,” Rasheed added.
Since his defeat against Daniil Medvedev in the US Open finals, Djokovic has not featured in any other tournament. But recently his compatriot Filip Krajinovic revealed that Djokovic will feature in the Davis Cup finals. Then again, the 34-year-old is yet to make any statement regarding his participation. So it remains to be seen how things turn out but there are possibilities of him turning up in Melbourne for the Australian Open next year.
