Australia chaos around Djokovic: New developments in tennis thriller

Created: 01/09/2022Updated: 01/09/2022, 2:08 pm

From: Tom Offinger

Novak Djokovic's crime thriller continues.

The tennis star is still fighting for participation in the Australian Open.

Now there are new developments.

All information in the news ticker.

• Due to an unclear vaccination status, Novak Djokovic is not allowed to travel to the Australian Open in Australia.

• Now there is news from the judge

  (see update from January 9th, 7:52 am).

• This news ticker is continuously updated.

Update from January 9, 7:52 a.m.:

One day before the expected court decision on the possible deportation of tennis star Novak Djokovic, the judge dealing with the case rejected a government motion for an adjournment. Judge Anthony Kelly said on Sunday that the trial would continue as planned on Monday at 10:00 a.m. (00:00 a.m.CET). In front of the athlete's deportation hotel, some demonstrators gathered again to protest against the detention of people in the facility.

The government wanted to postpone the hearing to Wednesday. The judge refused. World number one Djokovic, who did not make his vaccination status public and had repeatedly expressed himself critical of corona vaccinations, landed in Melbourne on Wednesday evening after he said he had received a medical exemption from the organizers of the Australian Open for entry. However, the Australian border guards did not acknowledge this.

Since then, the 34-year-old has been stuck in a deportation hotel in Melbourne.

His lawyers are fighting for his participation in the Australian Open, which begins on January 17th.

According to Australian authorities, Djokovic's visa to the country has been canceled due to a lack of vaccination certificates.

Now a court is dealing with the possible deportation.

Djokovic's lawyers want to have the cancellation withdrawn.

Djokovic infected with Corona in December?

Update from January 8, 9:14 a.m.:

In the immigration affair of Grand Slam record winner Novak Djokovic, a turnaround may be looming.

The world's number one lawyers said in a court hearing on Saturday that their client was infected with the corona virus in December.

The positive PCR test was dated December 16, which is the basis for the medical exemption.

The Australian Tennis Association had previously been innocent of the affair.

In an internal video leaked to the

newspaper , Tennis Australia boss Craig Tiley praised the team's "incredible work" in handling the matter.

Before leaving for Melbourne, 34-year-old Serb Djokovic, a vaccine skeptic, bragged on social media that he had been granted a waiver, which is widely believed to be due to his recent infection with the virus.

Djokovic has been stuck in a quarantine hotel since landing on Wednesday, and the Australian authorities have denied him entry because of apparently incorrect documents.

On Saturday, he asked his lawyers to be released from the complex.

Djokovic wants to defend his title at the Australian Open (from January 17), and a court will decide the case on Monday.

Djokovic reports from Australia

Update from January 7, 3:20 p.m.:

For the first time after the trouble about his entry to Australia, Djokovic has now also spoken out.

In a story on

, the world number one thanked people around the world for their uninterrupted support.

"I can feel that and I really appreciate it," wrote the 34-year-old.

He did not provide any further information about his situation at the Melbourne hotel or details of his visa revoked.

Entry chaos around Novak Djokovic: Ms. Jelena comments on Instagram

Update from January 7, 2:20 p.m.:

The current discussions about the entry of the tennis star also concern his family. Djokovic's wife Jelena commented on the situation on

and sent greetings to her husband's fans for Orthodox Christmas: "I wish that everyone is healthy, happy, safe and together with their families," wrote the 35-year-old. “We would all wish we were together today, but I comfort myself with the fact that we are all healthy. And we will grow from this experience. "

"Thanks also to all of you who use your voice worldwide to send support to my husband," continued Djokovic. Jelena Djokovic is not entirely immaculate either: In spring 2020, she shared a video that explains a connection between 5G technology and the emergence of the corona pandemic. Jelena and Novak Djokovic have been married since 2014 and have two children together.

Update from January 7, 12:10 p.m.:

Novak Djokovic has to take further harsh criticism for his entry plans. The leading Croatian daily

takes the Serbs hard: “The greatest tennis player in history had twelve long months to face the terrible facts. (...) But he ignored everything. “In general, the entire appearance of the world number one is marked by arrogance, the newspaper finds.

“In the best tradition of Balkan idiocy, he made a fool of himself because he thought that the Australian authorities, who did not hesitate to detain hundreds of millions of citizens (because of the pandemic), would generously hold the door open for him. Eventually, angry and frustrated, he was left on the wrong side of the arrival desk. (...) Novak Djokovic honestly deserves this kick in the buttocks ”, the report said.

Update from January 7th, 10:40 a.m.:

The trouble with world number one Novak Djokovic doesn't stop.

The authorities in Australia continue to deny the allegedly unvaccinated tennis star entry into the country.

The first Grand Slam tournament of the season, the Australian Open, is due to start there shortly.

After his competitor Rafael Nadal took a clear stand on the subject yesterday, Djokovic's former companion Boris Becker is now joining the debate.

Boris Becker on Novak Djokovic: "He's making a big mistake"

"I think he's making a big mistake not to get vaccinated," the Serb's former coach wrote in a guest post in the

. Djokovic's decision could damage the rest of his career and legacy as one of the greatest players of all time, argued the German tennis star. "I haven't had the opportunity to speak to Novak so far, but I would strongly advise him to get vaccinated."

“It's not just about Australia,” Becker continued.

"We live in a different world and he will find that it is very difficult to live a professional tennis player and to travel around the world without the vaccination." Even if he was allowed to stay in Australia, he would have the worst Preparation for a Grand Slam is behind him, according to Becker.

"A long journey and then he becomes isolated with no training opportunity - that makes it difficult for any fine-tuned athlete."

Novak Djokovic: Turbulent entry into Australia

Entry to Australia is currently only available to vaccinated and recovered people.

Djokovic, who has so far not wanted to comment publicly on his vaccination status, had applied for a medical exception and a corresponding visa in order to still take part in the first Grand Slam tournament of the year in Melbourne.

The news caused a worldwide outcry on January 5th and brought much criticism from the Australian government.

On the evening of January 5, the first media reported that Djokovic was refused entry and that he was stuck at Melbourne Airport.

"Rules are rules, especially when it comes to our borders," wrote Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday morning, Australian time, on Twitter.

A little later, Minister of Health Greg Hunt confirmed the invalidation of the visa.

It was announced yesterday that the Serbian star plans to take legal action against Australia's decision.

In the home country of the world number one, there is great indignation, the Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic assured that "every measure will be taken so that the abuse of the best tennis player in the world stops as soon as possible".

DJokovic's father also found instructions and compared his son to Jesus Christ.