Djokovic says he tried not to watch the Australian Open final

World number 1 in tennis, the Serbian Novak Djokovic, who returned to compete this Monday (21) with a victory over Lorenzo Musetti in the ATP 500 in Dubai, a month after his expulsion from Australia, admitted that he tried “not to watch” the Australian Open final won by Rafael Nadal.

“I tried not to watch it, but my family was watching, everyone, my wife, my children, so I had to follow it,” the tennis player revealed at a press conference after beating the Italian double 6/3 in 1:14, his first official game since December. .

In January, his participation in Melbourne was canceled after the dispute he had with the Australian authorities, who canceled his visa to enter the country for not being vaccinated against Covid-19, which prevented him from participating in the first Grand Slam of the year.

In his absence, it was Nadal who lifted the trophy, his 21st Grand Slam, beating both Djokovic and Swiss Roger Federer (both have 20) behind.

“But I congratulate Rafa. It was an incredible result. He is an incredible fighter”, praised Djokovic.

“I don’t want to belittle his victory, even though I didn’t participate. Of course, it wasn’t nice for me to leave the country like this and follow the tournament from afar,” added the Serbian.

This Monday, in the center court of the Dubai Duty Free Stadium, Djokovic was acclaimed by the public, despite acknowledging that the soap opera in Australia affected his reputation, which led him to consult specialists in public relations to try to understand his situation, which went out of the plan. sport and became a political issue.

“Obviously, there haven’t been many positive articles about this whole situation in the last month. I think maybe things are starting to change. I hope so, but I understand that there is still speculation and people are wondering,” he said.

Djokovic can play in Dubai because Covid-19 vaccination is not a requirement to enter the UAE, as it was in Australia or the United States, where Djokovic plans to play the Indian Wells and Miami Masters 1000 in March.