Novak Djokovic recently met with prominent anti-vaccine politician Robert F Kennedy Jr. during the 2025 Miami Open. This drew controversial reactions as Djokovic too, had been under immense scrutiny for his decision to not get vaccinated during the Covid-19 pandemic.
This even led the tennis star to be deported from Australia in 2022, which barred him from participating in the Australian Open that year. However, he highlighted back then that he was not against the idea of vaccination but wanted everyone to have the freedom to choose what they put in their body.
The news of this unusual meetup on Sunday was shared by the Secretary of the United States Health and Human Services himself on his X account, where he posted a picture of him along with the 24-time Grand Slam champion, clad in tennis gear.
“Novak Djokovic. First in tennis. First in integrity. First in courage. Guess who won this match?” he captioned his post.
Tennis fans all across the world reacted to this incident on social media as they blasted Djokovic for picking RFK Jr. as his friend.
“Anti-vaxxer who:- caused a measles outbreak in Samoa that k*lled 83 children. – claimed that COVID was genetically modified to not affect Chinese/Jews. This plus he is accused of a bunch of horrific stuff. At this point, you can only wonder how Novak picks his friends,” a fan said.
Another fan made a sly remark on the Serb along the same lines, owing to his past interactions with controversial public figures.
“djokovic if hanging out with MAGA nazists, conspiracy theorist and science deniers was a sport,” they wrote jeering him.
Here are some other reactions from tennis fans:
“It’s a bit odd that refusing to take a shot makes us heros, but here we are. thanks for helping,” a fan opined.
“It’s actually so easy to hate Djokovic,” said another furious fan.
“Novak is a fool. He is a Kosova genocide denier,” wrote a scornful fan.
“Australia asked him [Novak Djokovic] to leave the country for this vaccine status,” said another.
The 37-year-old has advanced to the Round of 32 match of the Miami Open.
Novak Djokovic hopes to redeem himself with the Miami Open
Novak Djokovic will look for a comeback at the Miami Open after a string of unimpressive results this season. After starting the year with the same agility, his run hit a roadblock with a possible career-straining injury during the 2025 Australian Open. The star then took a few weeks off from the sport to recover.
He made a comeback in Qatar but has since been unable to get a grip on the season with back-to-back early exits. He has managed to advance to the third round in Miami and will take on Camilo Ugo Carabelli in his next clash.
