Remembered as the GOAT... or No-vacc Djokovic?

SERB NEEDS TO GO ON CHARM OFFENSIVE TO WIN OVER A MISTRUSTFUL MELBOURNE

NOVAK DJOKOVIC has been granted the chance to win a record 21st Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open.

But if the Serb triumphs for a 10th time at Melbourne Park on January 30, will he be hailed as the greatest male player of all time or will he be remembered as a vaccinedodger who played by his own rules against the spirit of Australian laws?

His performances on and off the Rod Laver Arena over the next month will go a long way to defining his place in tennis history.

Speaking openly about the reason for his medical exemption – such as contracting Covid within the last six months – would take the heat out of an issue raging Down Under like bushfire.

Refusing to offer an explanation in his first press conference in Australia will see the controversy deepen. The ball is in his court. Djokovic, a believer in alternative medicine, has never been far from the headlines throughout the pandemic. In April 2020, during a Facebook Live discussion with fellow Serbian athletes, he said: “I am opposed to vaccination and I wouldn’t want to be forced by someone to take a vaccine in order to be able to travel.”

Then his disastrous Adria Tour event in June 2020 was called off when Djokovic, his wife Jelena (below), and three other players tested positive.

There had been no social distancing during the exhibition tournament – and players were photographed dancing at a Belgrade disco.

After initial apologies, Djokovic said in August 2020: “If I had the chance to do the Adria Tour again, I would do it again. It’s like a witch hunt.”

This sense of persecution, especially by the media, is a common theme.

His mother Dijana claimed: “It is horrible, too horrible, what they write but we are used to it.”

And his father Srdjan said in November it was “blackmail” that players had to publicly reveal their vaccination status.

Djokovic is a hero in his homeland but he is not afforded the worldwide acclaim great rivals Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal enjoy in a golden age of tennis.

The Australian Open rumpus follows his tears at the US Open final in September in response to the warm support during his defeat by Daniil Medvedev, a defeat which ended his brave bid to win a calendar Grand Slam.

That goodwill will be tested this month in Melbourne, the most lockeddown city in the world.

With the most Masters titles and winning records against Federer and Nadal, the stats say Djokovic is already the GOAT.

History, however, will be another judge.