The world No. 1 told Eurosport’s Tennis Legends Podcast, “I think this is a very positive news,” after the USTA shared its plan of action for staging the New York City-based major.
A week and a half ago, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic said he understood the economic reasons behind the USTA’s desire to stage the US Open, but wondered, “the question is, how many players are willing to accept those terms?”
It now appears that Djokovic, who initially expressed reservations when he first heard about the proposed restrictions, could be on board for the tournament after the USTA publicly announced its decision to move forward Wednesday, and shared more details about the protocols players would need to follow.
“I think that a lot of people were skeptical, especially for the U.S. events considering what the U.S. went through as a country during this pandemic. So a lot of people, including myself, were quite skeptical on whether it would happen or not,” Djokovic told Eurosport’s Tennis Legends Podcast.
“We are very glad that it is happening, of course, and it is very important that we provide opportunities, we provide jobs, we provide opportunities for players to compete. Because at the end of the day, this is what we do. As tennis professionals we love the sport; we are passionate about it. We miss competing and traveling and, at the end of the day, we miss being on tour. So, I think this is a very positive news.”
