World number one Novak Djokovic once again declined to reveal whether he has been vaccinated against COVID-19 and said he is unsure if he would defend his title at next year's Australian Open.
He was drawn in the toughest half of the draw with Nadal as well as in-form Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz and world number three Alexander Zverev, who could clash in the last eight.
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Images from the French Open quarter-final between Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros on Tuesday.
Images from Day 6 at the French Open, at Roland Garros, in Paris, on Friday.
Serbia's parliamentary speaker, Ivica Dacic, said on Monday he is concerned tennis star Novak Djokovic could still be deported from Australia despite winning his court case over his visa and vaccination exemption.
The company is developing a peptide, which inhibits the coronavirus from infecting the human cell, expects to launch clinical trials in Britain this summer, he added.
Carlos Alcaraz announced himself in Madrid when he played with a sore ankle but still dispatched three top five players -- Rafael Nadal, Djokovic and Alexander Zverev -- en route to his second Masters title, just days after his 19th birthday.
American great Pete Sampras said he does not expect any player to match Novak Djokovic's feat of winning the men's year-end world number one ranking seven times.
A round-up of all tennis action on Friday.
Djokovic had been favourite to win a 10th title at Melbourne Park and claim a 21st Grand Slam crown but the Serb now faces being deported from Australia.
Djokovic will be nowhere near the centre court after losing his bid to overturn a second visa cancellation.
Images from Day 6 of the 2023 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on Saturday.
Australian authorities scrambled on Sunday to file a legal defence of their decision to bar entry to tennis world number one Novak Djokovic over his COVID-19 vaccination status, as the Serbian superstar spent his fourth day in immigration detention.
The reaction has been swift across the world to Novak Djokovic's visa has been cancelled for a second time by the Australian government.
Aryna Sabalenka is the red-hot favourite at Melbourne Park, where another victory would give her a fourth major title and widen the gap in the rankings to Poland's Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff of the United States.
The 34-year-old is currently housed in a government detention hotel in the suburb of Carlton, 5 km (2 miles) north of Melbourne Park, after authorities cancelled his visa when he arrived in Australia.
Roger Federer paid tribute to his retiring rival Rafael Nadal on Tuesday, telling the Spaniard he challenged him like no other player.
Djokovic did not drop a set en route to the final in Rome
The Serbian Wimbledon champion extended his win streak to nine, wrapping up the final in 75 minutes without facing a break point and booked his place at next month's ATP Finals.
Novak Djokovic secured a semi-final place at the ATP Finals with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Russian Andrey Rublev on Wednesday, his 50th match win of the year, while Stefanos Tsitsipas withdrew from the tournament due to an elbow injury.
'This has nothing to do with sports, this is a political agenda. Novak is the best player and the best athlete in the world, but several hundred million people from the West can't stomach that.'
Images from Day 9 of the Wimbledon 2022 Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London, on Tuesday.
Djokovic, who is seeking to win a record 21st Grand Slam title at the tournament this month, said in a legal challenge on Saturday that he had been given the medical exemption because he had contracted COVID-19 last month.
Wimbledon's decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players from this year's tournament following the invasion of Ukraine was wrong and lacked respect, world number one Novak Djokovic said on Monday.
Wimbledon announced that it had barred all Russian and Belarusian players from this year's championships
Italy's Sinner and Spain's Alcaraz have won two Grand Slams each this year, with Alcaraz beating Sinner in closely fought clashes at the French Open semi-finals and the China Open final.
Sinner won in Cincinnati this week to claim his fifth title of a breakout season before the revelation that he avoided a ban over two positive tests
Novak Djokovic was confused about who had issued him with a medical exemption to enter Australia when interviewed by the Australian Border Force last week, according to transcripts of the interview.
Novak Djokovic has so far declined to disclose whether he is vaccinated and his father told Serbia's TV Prva that governing body Tennis Australia's stance on players being vaccinated was tantamount to "blackmail".
Djokovic's official website also confirmed his participation in the Dubai tournament.
All the action from Day 4 at the Australian Open on Wednesday
The Serbian top seed won a fourth successive title at the All England Club to take his overall Grand Slam tally to 21.
Novak Djokovic, the world number one ranked men's player, has reiterated his stand about freedom of choice over taking the COVID-19 vaccine as suspense grows over his participation at the Australian Open in January.
Images from the men's singles fourth round matches on Day 8 of the 2023 Australian Open in Melbourne on Monday.
Djokovic remained unflustered despite dropping the opening set and suffering several tumbles on the greasy surface.
Nadal says Wimbledon ban on Russian and Belarusian players unfair
Novak Djokovic's bid for a record 21st major title that would have completed the calendar-year Grand Slam collapsed at the final hurdle in a stunning 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 defeat by Russian Daniil Medvedev in the US Open final on Sunday.
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It was unclear exactly what happened to world number 76 Musetti whose stylish game was threatening to send Djokovic to his earliest Roland Garros exit since 2009.
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