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Novak Djokovic will finally set foot in American soil to play the 2024 Indian Wells after years of controversies

Originally posted on FirstSportz | By Rishab Dutta | Last updated 2/5/24

It has now been made official that Novak Djokovic will be participating in the Indian Wells this year for the first time since 2019. During the entire ‘No-Vax’ controversy regarding the Serb’s stand against compulsory vaccination for COVID-19, the BNP Paribas Open was one of the many tournaments that he could not participate in.

He has finally made his much-awaited return in the Indian Wells as the top seed now and fans will expect a sensational performance from the World No. 1.

Novak Djokovic did not get vaccinated for COVID-19 and for the same reason, he was denied entry into the United States of America and the Australian Open.

The Serb made it very clear that he would rather miss out on important tournaments than take the vaccine. He was not against the vaccine but supported an individual’s right to choose and was thus ready to pay the price for his stand.

As a result, World No. 1 missed out on a lot of tournaments. He missed the Australian Open, BNP Paribas Open, Miami Open, and US Open in 2022 and the Miami Open and Indian Wells in 2023. Before that, he did not participate in the 2021 Indian Wells because of its delayed scheduling and the 2020 Indian Wells was canceled.

When Novak Djokovic last participated in the tournament, he lost to Philipp Kohlschreiber in the round of 32 and Dominic Thiem went on to eventually win the tournament.

Carlos Alcaraz is the defending champion in the tournament and he will be the one to beat Novak Djokovic alongside Jannik Sinner, who defeated the Serb in the semifinal of the 2024 Australian Open.

Novak Djokovic’s record in the Indian Wells

Novak Djokovic has won the Indian Wells title a record five times. He is tied with Roger Federer for the record of winning the tournament the most number of times.

However, he last won the tournament in 2016 by defeating Milos Raonic in the final and it has been a long time since he found success in the BNP Paribas Open. Thus, he would like to change things this year, as he is making a comeback in the tournament.

The Serb won the tournament three back-to-back years in 2014, 2015, and 2016. In 2014 and 2015, he defeated Roger Federer in the final, and those were a few of the most intense matches in the rivalry between these two players.

The Serb will aim to win his record sixth Indian Wells title this year, with which he will have won the tournament the most times, exceeding Roger Federer’s tally of five.

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This article first appeared on FirstSportz and was syndicated with permission.

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