ANKARA 

Novak Djokovic on Thursday said he will be unable to join to the US Open, which begins on Monday.

"Sadly, I will not be able to travel to NY this time for US Open," the 35-years-old said on Twitter. "Thank you NoleFam (his fan base's post page) for your messages of love and support."

He added: "Good luck to my fellow players! I’ll keep in good shape and positive spirit and wait for an opportunity to compete again. See you soon tennis world!"

The Serbian tennis legend is not vaccinated against COVID-19, and the US requires non-citizens to be fully vaccinated against coronavirus to enter.

Djokovic, who has 21 Grand Slam titles, was the 2018 US Open champion in men's singles. He also missed this year's Australian Open because of the vaccination status.