Casper Ruud 'not crying about' unvaccinated Novak Djokovic's US Open troubles but admits situation is 'sad'

Casper Ruud admits for Novak Djokovic it is "sad that politics will get in his way" as he will miss the US Open, but he is not "crying about it" because he is focused on his own career.

Speaking to Barbara Schett and Mats Wilander on Eurosport, the Norwegian explained that players think about their chances in a tournament first of all.

"It’s an individual sport so all the players will think about themselves firstly, so it’s not too much talk, honestly," he said.

However he acknowledged the Serbian's difficulties, saying: "I think it’s sad that politics will get in his way, or these rules will get in his way.

"He’s chasing Rafa [Nadal] with one more ahead of him in the Grand Slam count, so he’s chasing history.

"I do think that it could be in the best interest of the country. He has won there many times before and he has brought a great crowd to the stadium. You can argue that it's in the best interest of the country. He’s a big superstar. Having him and Rafa in the final would be so epic, because everyone knows what’s on the line. I do think it’s very sad [but] for me personally, I'm not crying about it. But as a colleague I’m sad about it.

"This is a special case because of politics and I don’t think you should mix politics and sport because it makes a bad outcome. For him it’s so unfortunate, he won Wimbledon but didn’t win points for it."

Rudd questioned whether the severity of the pandemic means that it is essential that Djokovic is vaccinated before coming to the US.

He stated: "I don’t see him as a threat to the public even though he’s not vaccinated."

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