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Serbian tennis star on Thursday received a warm welcome at the  following the global drama around his decision to remain unvaccinated.

After being twice ahead of the year's first Grand Slam Tournament last month, Djokovic was in the United Arab Emirates for the Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic is practicing in Dubai 👀

(🎥 timmy_ superstar - Instagram)

— We Are Tennis (@WeAreTennis)

While at the , Djokovic posed for selfies with adoring fans and set off on a guided tour of Serbia’s national pavilion.

The pavilion was hosting an event for his foundation, the Novak Djokovic Foundation, which promotes early childhood education in Serbia.

As he ambled into the pavilion surrounded by a sea of journalists, fans clapped and chanted "Nole," his nickname.

"I’m proud to be on this stage," Djokovic said after his wife Jelena gave a presentation about the foundation’s work with children.

He said it was often hard to be involved as much as he wanted to be with the foundation given his whirlwind tournament schedule.

But he quickly acknowledged: "It’s not as busy as it used to be."

The audience burst into applause.

Novak, today at the Dubai Expo! 🥳

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— Julie 🇫🇷🇬🇧 (@NDjokofan)

Wearing a crisp white shirt and black mask emblazoned with his foundation’s logo, Djokovic gave high fives to toddlers and nodded encouragingly as he heard about Serbia’s start-up scene at the pavilion's multimedia exhibit.

Djokovic this week doubled down on his decision to stay unvaccinated. The No. 1-ranked tennis player said he would skip the French Open, Wimbledon and other tournaments if he was required to get a coronavirus vaccine to compete.

The government of Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, does not require visitors to be vaccinated to enter. The men's tennis tour event begins next week.