Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic Listed on Official 2022 US Open Entry List
July 20, 2022
Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic may not play at the 2022 U.S. Open, but they were on the official entry lists released on Wednesday nonetheless, per the Associated Press.
Unless Djokovic's COVID-19 vaccination status changes before the late-August tournament, he won't be permitted to play since the United States does not permit unvaccinated non-citizens to enter the country.
Williams' status for the tournament remains up in the air, meanwhile, after a yearlong battle with injuries. She did return for Wimbledon in late June, however.
Williams lost in the first round to Harmony Tan at the All England Club, a far cry from the dominance she has displayed at Wimbledon in the past, which she's won seven times.
Williams has had nearly as much success at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, winning the U.S. Open on six occasions.
"There's definitely lots of motivation to get better and to play at home," she said after Wimbledon when asked if she planned to play at this year's U.S. Open.
The 40-year-old reportedly will play in Toronto's National Bank Open and the Cincinnati Masters in August.
Djokovic, meanwhile, already missed the Australian Open this year because of his vaccination status, alongside tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami. He's also ineligible for the upcoming Cincinnati Masters and currently the U.S. Open as well.
And the 35-year-old made it clear after Wimbledon that he wasn't planning to change his mind on vaccination.
"I'm not vaccinated, and I'm not planning to get vaccinated so the only good news I can have is them removing the mandated green vaccine card, or whatever you call it to enter United States, or exemption," he told reporters at the time. "I don't know. I don't think exemption is realistically possible. If that is a possibility, I don't know what the exemption would be about. I don't know. I don't have [many] answers there."
He did play at the French Open, losing in the quarterfinals to Rafael Nadal, and won Wimbledon.
At the moment, an exemption doesn't appear to be on the table.
"The U.S. Open does not have a vaccination mandate in place for players, but it will respect the U.S. government's position regarding travel into the country for unvaccinated non-U.S. citizens," the U.S. Tennis Association said in a statement.