MUMBAI — World number one Novak Djokovic says he is excited by the prospect of playing at the US Open but says it would only be fair if every player eligible is able to compete.

The Unites States Tennis Association (USTA) announced this week that the US Open would go ahead at the end of August without fans and with strict health protocols in place

The Unites States Tennis Association (USTA) announced this week that the US Open would go ahead at the end of August without fans and with strict health protocols in place.

However, with the COVID-19 pandemic still peaking in some regions of the world, Djokovic is concerned that many players will not be able to travel even if they wanted to.

“Hopefully every single player who is participating, chosen by ranking and who deserves their place at the US Open, will have an equal opportunity to travel there and compete as everybody else,” Djokovic told Eurosport’s Tennis Legends podcast.

“This is very important because this is the foundation of the ATP and the foundation of international tennis.”

Several leading players have voiced their concerns about the US Open taking place, especially as the US has the most deaths from COVID-19 in the world.

Defending champion Rafael Nadal said he would be unlikely to travel there in the current circumstances while women’s world number two Simona Halep has also indicated she will not go.

Petra Kvitova is yet to make a call on participating in the US Open and hopes the health situation in New York will improve to make her decision easier, the two-times Wimbledon champion told Reuters.

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Earlier this month Djokovic said competing in New York would be impossible because of the “extreme” COVID-19 protocols in place for the tournament at Flushing Meadows.

However, the Serb says he is very glad it is going ahead and that the ATP Tour would resume in August after being suspended since March because of the pandemic.

“I’m extremely happy and excited to see that all the tournaments, especially Grand Slams, are organizing their events,” the 33-year-old 17-time Grand Slam champion said.

“I think that a lot of people were skeptical, especially for the US events considering what the US went through as a country during this pandemic. So a lot of people, including myself, were quite skeptical on whether it would happen or not. 

“Let’s hope that in the next two months some of those restrictions will loosen up a bit and that we will have a great, great tournament.”

Organisers also found support from 2019 women’s champion Bianca Andreescu of Canada, who said she plans to make the most of the opportunity to return to the courts.

New York will also host the Western & Southern Open from Aug 22-28 after it was moved from Ohio as part of efforts to contain the virus, and organisers said they would be flexible with the player confirmation dates.

Top-ranked women’s player, Ash Barty, plans to monitor the situation before making a decision.

“My team and I probably won’t make a decision on the US events until much closer to the time,” Barty told Australian Associated Press. “There are still a lot of questions we need answered before making our decision.

READ MORE: New York Governor Cuomo: US Open to go ahead without fans

The men’s ATP Tour and women’s WTA have also issued revised calendars for the resumption of professional tennis from August.

Australian Nick Kyrgios, who has voiced his concerns about resuming the sport too soon, hit out at ATP chief Andrea Gaudenzi on Twitter.

“Cheers mate, you’ve really looked after the players during this time. Seriously, how about you have a collaborative effort with us, potato,” he said.