In the careers of famous athletes there are many moments when it comes to athletic fame and some when even more is at stake. For Novak Djokovic this is just such a moment. How he behaves in the next few days will determine how he goes down in sports history. Just as a grandiose tennis virtuoso, who he is undisputed, or also as someone whose horizon extends beyond the white lines between which he has earned his fortune?
Thanks to an exemption, the avowed vaccination skeptic is apparently allowed to enter Melbourne without the mandatory spades, where the Australian Open will begin on January 17th, which Djokovic has already won nine times and in which he is aiming for his 21st Grand Slam title – a brand that makes him would make a leading figure in the triumvirate that he forms with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
Of the 3,000 or so people in the professional tennis entourage who come from all over the world for the tournament, 26 have tried to obtain such an exemption. It was granted to a handful of them. So Djokovic is not an isolated case. But because it is a special case, it – rightly – attracts a lot of attention.
Djokovic can permanently damage the whole sport of tennis
How he will be received by the audience in Melbourne, where there were particularly long lockdowns, is easy to calculate: This time Djokovic will allude to anger and disappointment and repeatedly have to put up with critical questions. That doesn’t necessarily have to spoil his sporting prospects. There are athletes who actually draw strength out of dislike. But the tournament, yes his entire sport and with it the stage, which is also existentially important for the many less privileged colleagues, can permanently damage Djokovic if he simply does his thing selfishly.
For the 34-year-old Serb, there is only one way to show real greatness: Djokovic has to let the world know why he was granted the exemption. This is the only way he can dispel the suspicion that something improper has been granted to him because he is rich and famous.
Athletes who want to achieve something have to learn to think about themselves first. Athletes who want to be remembered for more have to go beyond that and prove in the moments when it really counts that they have more in mind. So far, Novak Djokovic has rarely done that.