Novak Djokovic’s mysterious absence at the Dubai ATP 500 event sparks rumors as Rafael Nadal fans speculate a wildcard entry for the Spaniard

Novak Djokovic is expected to play in selective tournaments in 2024 after suffering a defeat against Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open semi-final.

Novak Djokovic’s mysterious absence at the Dubai ATP 500 event sparks rumors as Rafael Nadal fans speculate a wildcard entry for the Spaniard

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal (Credits: Imago)

The Dubai ATP 500 participant list has been released, and it has sparked conversations in the tennis world. Many fans are surprised by the absence of Novak Djokovic from the list, and many others think that Rafael Nadal might make an appearance in the tournament as a wildcard entry. 

Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Hubert Hurkacz, Adrian Mannarino, and Karen Khachanov are the top five seeds in the upcoming tournament, based on the list that has been released. Medvedev and Rublev will be the favorites to win the tournament.

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Medvedev, who recently lost the Australian Open 2023 final against Jannik Sinner, is hungry to prove his doubters wrong and he will try to go the distance by winning the Dubai Open. 

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Talking about Novak’s absence from the tournament, fans are speculating that after his loss against Sinner in the Australian Open semifinal, he will play an even more limited schedule than normal to focus only on the important tournaments.

Thus, he might skip the tournaments in February altogether and take part in either the Indian Wells or the Miami Open, or ideally both. However, having to play on the clay court in Monte Carlo immediately afterward will be tricky.

Usually, the Serb takes part in the Dubai ATP 500 but according to many fans as well, he would be better off playing selective tournaments at this point in his career and he is probably doing exactly that. 

Fans react to Novak Djokovic’s absence from Dubai ATP 500 and Nadal’s potential entry as a wildcard 

While fans are definite that Novak Djokovic will be playing in far fewer tournaments this season, and they are fine with that, not many are convinced that Rafael Nadal will make an appearance as a wildcard in the Dubai ATP 500.

The arrival of Rafael Nadal receives mixed reactions from the fans, one group cheers the Spaniard while the other one was in support of Nole.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal (image via: NDTV sports)

The Spaniard suffered a muscle tear in the 2024 Brisbane International, the tournament in which he made his comeback to the court after almost a year. 

Some fans pointed out that the final of the Dubai ATP 500 is one day before the Netflix exhibition match between Nadal and Alcaraz that will be played in Las Vegas.

It is probably due to this reason that he chose Doha over Dubai 500. The 22-time Grand Slam champion has already announced that he will be making his comeback at the 2024 Doha Open. However, in the bigger picture, Nadal would like to play in the 2024 French Open and that is the goal as of now. 

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