"We tried to get Novak Djokovic to be allowed
to get an exemption, but that wasn't able to happen," Blake told
Tennis Channel.
"Obviously, we're one of the premier tournaments in the world,
we'd like to have the best players that can play. We did all
that we could. We tried to talk to the government, but that's
out of our hands."
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the state's two U.S. senators
were among those calling on the Biden administration to to allow
world number one Djokovic to enter the U.S. and compete at the
tournament he has won six times.
Djokovic, 35, is also missing the ongoing Masters tournament in
Indian Wells, California due to his inability to secure the
exemption.
The U.S. currently bars unvaccinated foreigners from entry into
the country, a policy that is expected to be lifted when the
government ends its COVID-19 emergency declarations on May 11.
Djokovic, who missed last year's Australian Open after being
deported from that country due to his vaccination status, has
said he would skip Grand Slams rather than have a COVID shot.
He won his record-tying 22nd Grand Slam at the Australian Open
in January. He has not played at Indian Wells or the Miami Open
- which together comprise the "Sunshine Double" - since 2019.
A representative for Djokovic said the player would make no
further comment regarding his absence from the Miami tournament,
and he planned to return to the tour at the Monte Carlo Masters
claycourt event that begins on April 9.
Djokovic will then continue his preparations for the French Open
in May by playing in the Srpska Open in Banja Luka, Bosnia.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll and Nick Mulvenney; Additional
reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar; Editing by Lincoln Feast and
Sonali Paul)
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