The Serb, who retained his Wimbledon crown recently, said he was prepared to miss Grand Slams rather than take the Covid-19 vaccine
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 January 17, with the 34-year-old, who is opposed to vaccinations, repeatedly declining to say if he has been inoculated against Covid-19.
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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.
The Serb, who retained his Wimbledon crown recently, said he was prepared to miss Grand Slams rather than take the Covid-19 vaccine
Djokovic has been a regular visitor to the pyramid site and often meditates in its underground tunnels
The Serbian star slumped to seventh place as there were no ranking points on offer at Wimbledon this year
The Serb was deported from Australia over his vaccination status in January, preventing him from defending his Australian Open title
Djokovic exhibited ice-cool nerves in sweltering conditions to win 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6(3) for his fourth consecutive trophy at the grasscourt major
Djokovic beat Kyrgios 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 in the final
Rybakina, born in Moscow but representing Kazakhstan after switching allegiances in 2018, defeated Ons Jabeur in the women's final
Jabeur became the world number two player and then made history as the first African or Arab woman to reach a Grand Slam singles final