SYDNEY (Reuters) – World number one Novak Djokovic has pulled out of the Serbian team for the ATP Cup in Sydney, organisers of the team event said on Wednesday.
“Team Serbia will now be led by world number 33 Dusan Lajovic,” they said in a statement.
There has been intense speculation over Djokovic’s participation in the event and the Australian Open, which starts on Jan. 17, with the 34-year-old, who is opposed to vaccinations, repeatedly declining to say if he has been inoculated against COVID-19.
Australian Open organisers have stipulated that all participants must be vaccinated against the coronavirus or have a medical exemption granted by an independent panel of experts.
(Reporting by Sudipto Ganguly in Mumbai; ; editing by John Stonestreet)