Novak Djokovic withdraws from Miami Open 2021, cites personal reasons
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Novak Djokovic
After Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, it was time for Novak Djokovic to make the decision public. Djokovic too had decided to withdraw from the Miami Open 2021. The reason given by him surprisingly had no mention of the abdominal injury he had suffered at the Australian Open.
In an official statement addressed to his fans, Djokovic talked about having to leave family behind and travel and play under restrictions as the possible reason for his withdrawing from the event. Djokovic stressed on the importance of finding work life balance, which is a very pertinent issue for burnouts. He again reminded his fans that he will come back next year.
Novak Djokovic to his fans, “Dear fans, I’m very sorry to announce that this year I won’t travel to Miami to compete. I decided to use this precious time at home to stay with my family.” He continued, “With all restrictions, I need to find balance in my time on tour and at home. I look forward to coming back next year!”
Players withdrawing and Djokovic’s past results in Miami
The Miami Open comes at the end of the hardcourt season, right after this there will be the Clay courts season followed by Grass court season. Sometimes players want to just move on to the clay courts, and don’t want to play an extra event on the hard court.
Another reason is the reduction in prize money. Very few players will admit to it publicly but reduction in prize money, the total prize money went down from $19,471,370 to $6,687,570 in 2021, a 65% drop, can discourage players from participating. Specially when there is an element of risk associated with travel.
Djokovic has done very well in this tournament in the past, he has won it six times. The first time he won it was in 2007, and the last time he won it was in 2016 when he beat Kei Nishikori in the Finals, 6-3 6-3. Apart from Djokovic, Roger Federer too has been successful at the event. He has won it four times, and was the defending champion this year.
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Auri Ghosh
(652 Articles Published)