With the 2022 Australian Open about just two months away, we’re still not sure whether or not Tennis Australia will be requiring the COVID-19 vaccine in order to participate.
After initially saying that only vaccinated players would be allowed to enter the tournament, a leaked email from the Women’s Tennis Association has cast doubt on vaccine requirements for the Australian Open.
Based on the email, unvaccinated players appear to be allowed to enter the tournament, but with different requirements.
“[Players] can arrive any time after December 1st, but will be subject to two weeks’ hard quarantine,” the email read.
Regardless of whether or not the tournament will mandate the vaccine for players, there is at least one star player that feels those that abstain from the jab are being “selfish.”
“I understand that there are people who do not want to be vaccinated, but it seems a bit selfish to me,” 20-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal said. “We have suffered a lot.”
“We do not know 100 percent the effects of vaccines, but we do have to trust the doctors… we do know the effect of the virus if we are not vaccinated. It seems that today we [Spain] are the country that is least affected by the virus and I think it is because we have a large part of the population vaccinated.”
Nadal ended his 2021 season in August due to an injury to his left foot, which has been an issue for him for the past year. He is planning on playing in the 2022 Australian Open.
“My plan is to play Abu Dhabi in December and then in a tournament before Australia and then the Australian Open,” Nadal said.
The COVID-19 rules for the tournament will have a large impact on the world’s number one player — Novak Djokovic.
Djokovic has not stated whether or not he is vaccinated, and recently said that he’s unsure whether he will travel to Australia.
“Well, I’m going to decide on whether I go to Australia or not after I see the official statement from Tennis Australia,” Djokovic said.
“Right now, we don’t have any official announcement or statement. So until that’s out, I won’t be talking about this anymore, because I don’t want to be part of the stories about the assumptions and what-ifs.”
“When official condition requirements to travel to Australia and play in Australia are out, then obviously I’ll see what I personally do with that, and also the bigger group of the players, you know, because the situation is obviously different in Australia than most parts of the world.”
The Australian Open is scheduled to play from January 17 through January 30.
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Joe Morgan is the Sports Reporter for The Daily Wire. Most recently, Morgan covered the Clippers, Lakers, and the NBA for Sporting News. Send your sports questions to [email protected].