“He Didn’t Want to Risk It”: Novak Djokovic Reflects on Rafael Nadal’s Withdrawal From US Open 2020

For the first time in 21 years, we won’t be seeing Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer in a Grand Slam. Both players have cited different reasons for their withdrawal from the US Open. Novak Djokovic is the only player from the ‘Big 3’ taking part in the tournament, and these uncertain times have led to this never-seen-before situation.

Roger Federer is out because of his knee surgery while Rafael Nadal isn’t too comfortable with the coronavirus situation in the US. He mentioned that as a risk for him and his team. Also, the transition from a hard court to a clay court would have been tough, another factor that guided his decision to skip the US Open.

“These kind of circumstances are very unpredictable” –  Novak Djokovic

Djokovic is in New York and has now reached the Western and Southern Open semifinals. After his quarterfinal win, he was asked about Rafa’s decision which Djokovic said he understood.

“I can understand why he stayed in Europe. Obviously, these kind of circumstances are very unpredictable. I guess he didn’t want to risk, you know, his health, health of his team members, you know, coming here.” Djokovic said. “Of course, he has full right and choice to do that. Of course, that’s why the ranking system that is in place till the next year is actually protecting him and all the players that don’t want to compete.”

At the US Open, Nadal would have had the opportunity to match Federer’s Grand Slam tally. However, he made the tough call of skipping the event after assessing all the risks.

Read More: US Open 2020 Draw: Novak Djokovic Faces A Tough Path To 18th Grand Slam

Speaking of his own decision, Djokovic said he always wanted to come to New York. The only doubt he had was regarding the quarantine rules when the tour would eventually move to Europe for the clay-court tournaments. But once the quarantine rules were relaxed, Djokovic was comfortable coming to the US.

“For me, personally, I have always wanted to come from the very beginning, but the reason why I kind of delayed decision to come is because there were some things that I actually talked about previously that were not confirmed and defined, for example, that I’ll be able to come back to Europe and compete at the European tour without being quarantined,” he said.

Djokovic is in the semifinals of Western and Southern Open. He is a firm favorite to win this event as well as the US Open. Fans can only wait and watch to see how the US Open turns out without Nadal and Federer.