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Nick Kyrgios believes the Australian Open should be cancelled as he threw his support behind rival Novak Djokovic, insisting the COVID-19 vaccine mandate is “morally wrong”.
It remains to be seen whether world number one Djokovic will defend his Australian Open title in Melbourne in January due to vaccination requirements.
The state of Victoria, where the year’s opening grand slam takes place at Melbourne Park, has introduced a vaccine mandate for professional athletes and across most industries amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The 2021 Australian Open went ahead, albeit in February instead of January, and without fans for most of the tournament following a snap lockdown of Melbourne due to COVID-19.
Djokovic was among the players critical of the conditions athletes endured prior to this year’s Australian Open, with strict quarantine measures introduced.
Kyrgios and Djokovic have clashed in the past, but the former backed the nine-time Australian Open champion as he called for the upcoming grand slam to be scrapped.
“I don’t think the Aus Open should go ahead, just for the people in Melbourne – you’ve got to send a message,” Australian former world number 13 Kyrgios said on his ‘No Boundaries’ podcast.
“How long did [Melbourne] do in lockdown? 275 days or something?”
Kyrgios also referenced Brooklyn Nets star and NBA champion Kyrie Irving, who is yet to feature this season due to his refusal to be vaccinated against coronavirus, which is preventing him from practicing or playing – New York has a mandate in place that states players must have had a COVID-19 jab.
Kyrgios – an Australian Open quarter-finalist in 2015 – added: “Kyrie, Novak … These guys have given so much, sacrificed so much. They are global athletes who millions of people look up to.
“I just think it is so morally wrong to force someone to be vaccinated.
“I’m double vaccinated, but I just don’t think it’s right to force anyone [to be vaccinated] and say ‘you can’t come and play here because you’re not vaccinated’.
“There are other solutions around it, [such as] to get tested every day. In the [United] States I know they’ve got rapid tests, and it’s coming to Australia. It’s 85 per cent success rate, you wait 15 minutes and then you’re allowed to play.”
Victorian sports minister Martin Pakula hit back on Tuesday, telling reporters: “I really like Nick Kyrgios and I cheer for him every time he plays and I certainly don’t want to have beef with Nick Kyrgios but I actually couldn’t follow the logic of his comments. We’ve had a long lockdown so the Australian Open shouldn’t proceed? I’m not sure I follow that.
“I think the opposite applies. Melburnians, Victorians and, frankly all Australians, are absolutely gagging for major events. Our economy needs it, our state psyche needs it. It’s a global grand slam, it’s going to go ahead.”
