Novak Djokovic: Why has he withdrawn from Indian Wells? Will he play at Miami Open? Will he lose world No. 1 ranking?

The world No. 1 is a five-time champion at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament but his last appearance was in 2019.

Why has Djokovic pulled out from Indian Wells? Why is the timing of his withdrawal important? And will he also now miss the Miami Open?

Why has Djokovic withdrawn from Indian Wells?

As it stands, Djokovic is not allowed to travel to the US, which is the only country on the ATP Tour that requires international travellers to be vaccinated against Covid-19.

Djokovic is unvaccinated and said in early 2022 that he was willing to miss Grand Slams rather than change his stance and receive the vaccine.

The current US entry regulations are set to be lifted on May 11.

However, Djokovic will not play at Indian Wells after officially withdrawing two days before the tournament starts on March 8.

Djokovic also missed large chunks of the 2022 season due to being unvaccinated. He didn’t play the Australian Open, Indian Wells or the Miami Open, and then missed the North American hard-court summer, including the US Open and back-to-back Masters events.

When can Djokovic return to the US?

If the US regulations requiring international travellers to be vaccinated do indeed end on May 11, it would mean Djokovic could return to play at the US Open in the summer, as well as the Canadian Open and the Western & Southern Open.

Djokovic hasn’t played at the Canadian Open since 2018 while his last appearance at the Western & Southern Open was in 2020.

He is a three-time champion at the US Open and made the final in his most recent appearance at the Grand Slam in 2021.

Will Djokovic play the Miami Open?

Djokovic’s participation at the Miami Open is still unknown. He is currently on the entry list and has not withdrawn from the ATP 1000 event, which starts on March 22.

Miami Open tournament director James Blake had thrown his support behind Djokovic.

“They are setting it for May 11 and we’re on a timeline. We can’t have the Miami Open after May 11. It’s at the time it is and we’d love to have our greatest champion there.

“We’ve highlighted the fact that it would be good for the economy, for the Miami community, and for tennis fans all over the world who want to see the greatest player in our game play right now.”

However, speaking before Djokovic withdrew from Indian Wells, Blake added: “If he’s allowed to play there [Indian Wells], then we’ll be very prepared for him to be in Miami, as well. If he’s not, the writing may be on the wall.”

Djokovic is a six-time champion in Miami, where he last played in 2019.

Why was timing of Djokovic’s withdrawal important?

Djokovic caused controversy last year when he only withdrew from Indian Wells after the draw had been made. That meant rather than every seed just moving up a spot, Djokovic’s place in the draw was taken by Grigor Dimitrov, who originally missed out on a seeded spot as the 33rd-highest ranked player.

Dimitrov’s place was taken by qualifier Mikhail Kukushkin while Djokovic’s late withdrawal also meant Joao Sousa entered the draw as a lucky loser, but he wouldn’t have needed to play qualifying had Djokovic pulled out earlier.

Djokovic said at the time on Twitter: “While I was automatically listed in the [Indian Wells and Miami Open] draw, I knew, given the entry requirements to the US, it would be unlikely I’d be able to travel there. But as international Covid regulations are always being amended, I wanted to wait to see if anything would change.”

Djokovic vowed not to do the same this time around.

Djokovic’s withdrawal from Indian Wells has seen Nikoloz Basilashvili secure a spot in the draw.

When is the Indian Wells draw?

The draw for Indian Wells will take place on Monday, March 6.

Qualifying for the tournament starts on March 6 and the main draw for the ATP and WTA events starts on Wednesday, March 8.

Will Djokovic miss any other events?

As it stands, it looks as though Djokovic will be able to play the rest of the season.

The US regulations requiring international travellers to be vaccinated look set to end on May 11 and there are no restrictions to prevent him playing throughout the European clay-court season or the grass-court season, so he will be free to play at the French Open and Wimbledon.

Who is playing at Indian Wells?

World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz will be the top seed in Djokovic’s absence, as long as he is fit after pulling out of the Mexican Open last week due to injury.

Alcaraz has a chance to finish Indian Wells as the world No. 1 after Djokovic was beaten in the semi-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Alcaraz made the semis in Indian Wells last year so can gain a maximum of 640 additional ranking points this time around if he wins the title. He can also gain 240 points for finishing as runner-up, but Djokovic is 380 ahead, so Alcaraz needs to win the title to get to No. 1.

If Alcaraz doesn’t get to No. 1 in Indian Wells then he can’t after the Miami Open as he is the defending champion there so has no points to gain.

World No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas could be in contention to get to No. 1 for the first time as he only has 135 points to defend across the two events.

Tsitsipas is 1,355 points behind Djokovic this week.

What is the prize money at Indian Wells?

The prize money at the tournament is the same for men and women.

The winner of the event will earn $1,262,220 (£1.05m), the runner-up will get $662,360 (£551,507), the semi-finalists get $352,635 (£293,618) and the quarter-finalists $184,465 (£153,592).

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