Barry Cowan reacts to Novak Djokovic being given green light to play Wimbledon

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• Novak Djokovic

Tennis expert Barry Cowan says it's great to hear Novak Djokovic will be allowed to compete at Wimbledon as he acknowledged that there is no tournament that doesn't need Djokovic. On Tuesday, the Wimbledon organizers confirmed unvaccinated individuals won't face problems entering the UK and competing at the Championships.

Djokovic, a six-time Wimbledon champion, is set to battle for a fourth consecutive Wimbledon title. "I think any tournament need Djokovic, any tournament need (Rafael) Nadal, any tournament needs (Roger) Federer, any tournament needs Serena Williams," Cowan told Sky Sports.

"Let's hope that we can have a great, positive story at Wimbledon with these players. We've seen Novak play some astonishing matches in the past and last year, what he achieved again, was remarkable and he is undercooked at the moment."

Djokovic given the green light to play Wimbledon

"The requirements set out by government to enter the UK do not include mandatory vaccination, therefore whilst of course it is encouraged, it will not be a condition of entry to compete at the Championships this year," The All England Club chief executive Sally Bolton said.

Last year, Wimbledon imposed strict conditions on the participants and also reduced the crowd number. That won't be happening this year. "We are planning to return to a normal Championships this year. And so we don't intend to implement any of the Covid-19 measures that we saw last year in any substantial fashion," Bolton added.

"But we are, of course, keeping it on our radar in case we need to take further action when we continue to engage with DCMS, public health officials and with other sports. "But this means that players will be able to return to their own choice of accommodation.

We will see full capacity crowds for the whole event. And we're absolutely thrilled to welcome back the wider tennis family to Wimbledon this year."