Current world No. 6 Rafael Nadal said he felt sorry that Novak Djokovic was denied entry into Australia, but added that the he knew for months he could potentially face problems if he arrived without being vaccinated. Video / SNTV via AP
OPINION:
On one level, you've got to admire Novak Djokovic. He tonight scored his first points in his legal battle to appear at the 2022 Australian Open, when the decision to cancel his visa was quashed by the Federal Circuit Court, which also ordered he should be freed from immigrationdetention.
The Australian Government will pay Djokovic's costs and was ordered to return his passport and personal effects to him.
However, immediately after the ruling, a lawyer representing the Australian Government informed the court Immigration Minister Alex Hawke reserves his power to remove Djokovic from Australia and said they are considering a second notice of cancellation, throwing his participation in the Australian Open next week into further doubt.
The Serb certainly has cojones. The 20-time Grand Slam champion was already a polarising figure, despite his achievements, and he set himself up for more controversy, with his stubborn stance around Covid-19 immunisation, continually refusing to confirm his vaccination status.
He has never explained exactly why, though Djokovic is a passionate advocate of natural health principles and has strong views about being compelled to take the jab.
That's fine for the everyday person, whose life can go on as normal, albeit with a few complications.
It's a bit different as one of the highest-profile athletes in the world, revered by millions. And it's even more complicated as a tennis player, with the constant global travel.
But the 34-year-old has doggedly stuck to his position, which has backfired spectacularly in Melbourne, with the bizarre dramas of the past six days.
Novak Djokovic was already a polarising figure in the world of tennis. Photo / Getty
Locked in an interrogation room. His phone taken away. No access to lawyers. Visa cancelled. It reads like a John Grisham novel.
Maybe Australian officials overreacted; there's certainly been a cynical play by some politicians, notably Prime Minister Scott Morrison. But it's hard to feel sympathy for Djokovic, and his efforts to game the system.
Tennis players have their schedules locked in months in advance, especially for majors, but Djokovic was playing fast and loose, still hoping for a last-minute medical exemption to enter Victoria unvaccinated, a few weeks before the tournament.
Maybe it was because he felt invincible at the Australian Open.
Across the past decade he has tasted defeat only three times in Melbourne, and has won the tournament on a record nine occasions, including the last three successive events. Everything he touches turns to gold in the Victorian capital — so Djokovic probably wondered why he even needed an exemption.
Then, with remarkable timing, Djokovic tests positive for Covid-19 on December 15, according to the Institute of Public Health of Serbia, which should get him into Australia under an exemption (even though the Tennis Australia deadline for such applications expired five days earlier). Boom!
But the infected Djokovic showed little regard for public health, attending two indoor events over the next two days, photographed unmasked at both and mixing and mingling.
On December 18, the 20-time Grand Slam winner then had a L'Equipe photoshoot, sans mask.
Still, everything was on track, as his visa came through on New Year's Day, before Djokovic made probably his biggest mistake, posting gleefully on social media just before his flight.
That tweet — which talked about an "exemption permission" — set off a firestorm of reaction, especially in Australia, making it into a political issue.
