Vaccines Aren’t Done Shaping Djokovic’s Tennis Legacy

When Novak Djokovic boarded a flight from Melbourne, Australia to Dubai on Sunday night, he put an end to the strangest trip of his nearly two decades as a professional tennis player. But the past 10 days have made it clear that the cost of remaining unvaccinated is still rising for Djokovic’s career and legacy—and could undercut his effort to wind up with more major titles to his name than any man in history. Djokovic had flown halfway across the world and not played a single match, all because he believed he had secured an exemption to Australian rules requiring travelers to be vaccinated. Instead, he spent an entire night explaining himself to border officials who canceled his visa, moved into government detention for almost a week, and twice had lawyers plead his case to remain in Australia.