"I admire him in a lot of ways, but I wish his views on vaccine weren't that way" - Bill Gates on Novak Djokovic's COVID-19 vaccination stance

Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, has taken a sly dig at World No. 1 Novak Djokovic over his COVID-19 vaccination stance.

Gates said that vaccination doesn't entirely eliminate the possibility of getting infected. However, the billionaire added that doing so reduces the risk of infection.

"Being vaccinated helps the community that you're in. They're not perfect at blocking infection, but they do reduce infection, and so it is unfortunate that someone's health concerns are so extreme that they cannot participate in that community protection."

Gates added:

"If they're an insipational and trusted person, you know, then, they're spreading that, it just makes it tougher to get the vaccination levels that we really need. So, I admire him in a lot of ways, but I wish his views on vaccine weren't that way."

As he was not vaccinated against COVID-19, Novak Djokovic wasn't allowed to defend his title at the Australian Open. He was also not allowed to compete in Indian Wells and Miami.

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Novak Djokovic's stop-start 2022 campaign

Djokovic in action at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship

Novak Djokovic's season was fraught with uncertainty due to his vaccination status. However, he's seemingly back in the flow of things with countries easing their COVID-19 restrictions. The Serb reached the final of his home tournament in Belgrade, losing to Andrey Rublev in three sets.

The 34-year-old commenced his campaign in Dubai, where he was beaten by Jiri Vesely in the quarterfinals. At his next stop in Monte Carlo, Djokovic lost to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in his tournament opener before his run to the final in Belgrade.

The Serb gained plenty of game time in Serbia, where he was taken the distance in all four matches. Djokovic racked up further game time at the Madrid Masters, where he lost to Carlos Alcaraz in a third-set tie-break.

The Serb will hope for a deep run at the Rome Masters next week ahead of his title defence at Roland, where he hopes to hit his stride.