I’m willing to pay the price: Novak Djokovic

World No 1 Novak Djokovic has claimed he is not antivaccination but would rather skip Grand Slams than be forced to get a COVID jabThe Serb was deported in extraordinary circumstances on the eve of last monthrsquos Australian Open where Rafael Nadal won a record 21st Grand Slam trophy to move ahead of Djokovic and Roger Federer on the alltime menrsquos listDjokovic was asked in an interview with the BBC published on Tuesday if he would sacrifice taking part in Wimbledon and the French Open over his stance on the vaccine even if it meant he missed out on his chance to move ahead of his rivals and make historylsquoAware of consequencesrsquoldquoYes that is the price that Irsquom willing to payrdquo Djokovic said ldquoI am part of a global sport that is played in a different location every single week I understand the consequences of my decision I was prepared not to go to Australia I understand not being vaccinated today I am unable to travel to most of the tournaments at the momentrdquoHowever his road to defending his Wimbledon title seems clear because as of a few days ago the unvaccinated are no longer required to quarantine in Britain The French Open in May could also be a possibilityThe most problematic tournament for Djokovic at the moment is the US Open where a vaccination certificate is required But Djokovic says his health comes above making history ldquoThe principles of decision making on my body are more important than any title or anything else I am trying to be in tune with my body as much as I possibly canrdquo he said Djokovic said he did not want to be associated with the antivax movement but supported an individualrsquos right to choose ldquoI was never against vaccinationrdquo he said adding he had received vaccines as a child ldquoIrsquove always supported the freedom to choose what you put in your bodyrdquo Djokovic claims he did not say he was antivax when in Australia ldquobecause no one asked me for my stance and opinion on vaccinationrdquoDjokovic told the BBC he hoped vaccination requirements would change and that he could play for many more years ldquoI was never against vaccination I understand that globally everyone is trying to put a big effort into handling this virus and seeing hopefully an end soon to this virusrdquolsquoSad disappointedrsquoDjokovic said he was sad with how events played out in Australia where he spent days in detention at a notorious immigration hotel ldquoI was really sad and disappointed with the way it all ended for me in Australiardquo he said ldquoIt wasnrsquot easy The reason why I was deported from Australia was because the minister for immigration used his discretion to cancel my visa based on his perception that I might create some antivax sentiment in the country or in the city which I disagree withrdquoThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever