World Number 1 men’s tennis player Novak Djokovic came to Melbourne ahead of the Australian Open, to defend his title, with an exemption from the COVID-19 vaccine mandate in tow. However, on arrival, the Serbian had his visa cancelled by the Australian Border Force, who weren’t satisfied with the evidence he had to offer with regards to his applications.
A harrowing few hours ensued for Djokovic before he was moved to a Melbourne hotel and detained while his legal team were looking for ways to solve the matter at the earliest. If Djokovic’s legal team cannot satisfy the courts and authorities in Australia, the champion tennis player will be deported. However, the authorities have confirmed that there will be no move to send the 20-time Grand Slam winner home before Monday’s hearing.
Ahead of Monday’s hearing, Djokovic’s lawyers have filed in court, among other things, that the ace player had contracted the COVID-19 virus and got a positive test on 16 December, to justify his vaccine-free travel to Australia.
What Has Novak Djokovic and His Team Said So Far?
The Serbian first announced on social media that he had been granted exemption from the COVID-19 vaccine for the Australian Open and would be travelling to Melbourne. Matters took a downturn on landing in Melbourne and Djokovic since has only thanked his fans via a message on Instagram for their support while he has been detained.
His lawyers, who are trying to fix the situation, have claimed in court documents, that Djokovic was granted his exemption from Tennis Australia on 30 December, after being granted a temporary visa to enter Australia on 18 November.
Along with that, Djokovic’s team have also pointed out to the court in their documents that the world number 1 had received communication from the Australian home affairs department on 1 January, about his travel declaration, which told Djokovic that “[his] Australia travel declaration [had] been assessed” and that “[his] responses indicate[d] that [he met] the requirements for a quarantine-free arrival into Australia where permitted by the jurisdiction of your arrival”.
Djokovic’s lawyers have also alleged that the star player wasn’t afforded the correct processes at the airport in Melbourne as he wasn’t allowed to speak to his legal team once the visa issues came up. They have alleged that the Serb was pressured into allowing the officials to make an immediate decision, despite his lack of rest, and his confusion and shock at the situation.
Another key point of discussion during the hearing - the documents suggest - will be over whether border officials misconstrued the guidance around what constituted a medical reason not to be vaccinated.
The tennis player’s team have also announced that Djokovic received a positive test result for COVID-19 on 16 December, something which was unknown up until now. However, since that news came out in the public domain, pictures have surfaced showing Djokovic attending various social functions, including one with kids.
Neither Djokovic nor his team have commented on that as of Saturday.
The Serbian tennis player is being represented by Nick Wood, who noted that solving the visa issue was critical. "As I sit here, the absence of a visa, if the cancellation decision is valid, is an insuperable obstacle to Mr Djokovic competing in the tournament," Wood said.
What Have Australian Authorities Said?
The Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has been quite clear from the get go that the rules are the same for everyone and if Djokovic wasn’t able to provide the required evidence, he would have to take the next flight out and head back home.
"My view is that any individual seeking to enter Australia must comply with our border requirements. Now Novak Djokovic, when he arrives in Australia, he has to, if he's not vaccinated, must provide acceptable proof that he cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons to be able to access the same travel arrangements as fully-vaccinated travellers," Morrison told a media conference on Wednesday, 5 January.
"So we await his presentation and what evidence he provides us to support that. If that evidence is insufficient, then he will be treated no different to anyone else and he'll be on the next plane home. There should be no special rules for Novak Djokovic at all. None whatsoever," he added.
"There are other cases - there are quite a number over the last couple of years - where people have had these exemptions and have the suitable proof to support their claim in those circumstances. So the circumstance is not unique. The issue is whether he has sufficient evidence to support that he would qualify for the exemption," the Australian PM said.
The state government for Victoria, where the Australian Open will be played at Melbourne Park, has said full vaccinations for all players, staff and fans is a must unless there is a genuine medical reason.
Victoria state Deputy Premier James Merlino said medical exemptions would not be “a loophole for privileged tennis players” and would only be possible in “exceptional circumstances if you have an acute medical condition”.
Tennis Australia said Djokovic’s request for an exemption “was granted following a rigorous review process involving two separate independent panels of medical experts”.
Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley had said that a total of 26 people had applied for exemptions and a “handful” were granted.
Among the acceptable grounds were acute major medical conditions, serious adverse reaction to a previous dose of a COVID-19 vaccine or evidence of a COVID-19 infection within the previous six months.
Judge Anthony Kelly had asked lawyers when the Australian Open was to begin and when the nine-time Australian Open champion was scheduled to play his first match. The judge also said that Djokovic could give evidence remotely from immigration detention but that Tennis Australia preferences of wrapping up the matter by Tuesday would not affect the hearing.
"If I can say with the respect necessary, the tail won't be wagging the dog here," he said.
What Have Other Players Said?
One of the most prominent statements on the Djokovic matter came from his competitor Rafael Nadal, who himself has only recently recovered from COVID-19 before heading to the Australian Open. Nadal said that Djokovic had made a decision but the consequences had to be accepted.
“Of course I don’t like the situation that is happening. But at the same time, he knew the conditions since a lot of months ago, so he made his own decision," Nadal told the media.
“I think if he wanted, he would be playing here in Australia without a problem. He went through another - he made his own decisions, and everybody is free to take their own decisions, but then there are some consequences."
Meanwhile, Nick Kyrgios has said that given the situation, he would definitely want to avoid playing Djokovic if he eventually turned up at the Australian Open. He also said that Australia's treatment of the world number one wasn’t up to the mark and that authorities need to do better.
"Look I definitely believe in taking action, I got vaccinated because of others and for my mum's health," he said on social media. "But how we are handling Novak's situation is bad, really bad.
"Like these memes, headlines, this is one of our great champions but at the end of the day, he is human. Do better."
What Have Serbia’s President and Djokovic’s Family Said?
The whole episode has not gone down well with the Djokovic family and his fans. The Serbian President Aleksander Vucic called it a witch-hunt against the World Number 1.
"What is not fair-play is the political witch hunt (being conducted against Novak), by everybody including the Australian Prime Minister pretending that the rules apply to all," sen.com.au quoted Vucic telling the media on Friday.
"I fear that this relentless political pursuit of Novak will continue until the moment they can prove something, because when you cannot defeat somebody then you turn to these type of things," added Vucic.
Meanwhile, Djokovic's father, Srdjan, said in Belgrade, that his son was a victim of "political oligarchy".
"Our Novak, our pride. Novak is Serbia and Serbia is Novak," he said. "They are trampling over Serbia and by doing that, they are trampling on the Serbian people. The leader of that faraway land, Scott Morrison… dared to attack Novak and expel him before he had reached their country. They had wanted to throw him to his knees, and not just him, but our beautiful Serbia.
"We Serbs are a proud European people. Throughout history, we have never attacked anyone, we only defended ourselves. That is what Novak, our pride, our Serb, the pride of the entire free world, is now doing by his behaviour towards hosts and (tournament) organisers across the world, showing what kind of people he comes from," Srdjan was quoted as saying by sen.com.au.
Djordie Djokovic, Novak's brother, suggested that Tennis Australia was behind the mess. "He had the same document as several tennis players who are already in Australia. Novak and his team had no way of contacting federal authorities. He was taken to a migrant hotel to a dirty room without any belongings, which he was told would be returned to him upon his return to Europe.
"He was treated like a criminal while he is a healthy and decent man and a sportsman who has not endangered anyone's life and has not committed any federal or legal offence," said Djordie.
(With Inputs from AP and The Age)
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