The Australian federal court has rendered its decision: it rejected Novak Djokovic’s appeal against his expulsion from the country, ordered by the government which considered that the world number 1, not vaccinated against Covid-19, represented a “health risk” .
Novak Djokovic will therefore not play at the Australian Open which begins on Monday and will be expelled from the country.
He says he respects the verdict and is preparing to leave Australia
Immediately, the sentence pronounced the player said he was “extremely disappointed” by the decision of the Court on his expulsion. He said in a statement that he respected the verdict and was preparing to leave the country.
The decision was taken unanimously by the three judges on the eve of the start of this tournament during which the 34-year-old Serb intended to seek a record 21st Grand Slam title.
The Serbian player therefore lost his match against the Australian government after a soap opera with many twists and turns.
In his conclusions filed on Saturday before the Court, the Minister of Immigration Alex Hawke had argued that the presence of Djokovic in the country “is likely to represent a health risk”. He said it encouraged “anti-vaccination sentiment” and could deter Australians from getting their booster shots, as the Omicron variant spreads rapidly across the country.
They humbled themselves
The Australian government has welcomed its victory against Novak Djokovic. “Australia’s strong border protection policy has kept us safe during the Covid-19 pandemic,” Immigration Minister Alex Hawke said in a statement. “Australians have made great sacrifices to get here and the Morrison government is firmly committed to protecting this position,” he added.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic felt that the Australian authorities had “humiliated themselves” by deciding to expel world tennis No.1 Novak Djokovic, after a long saga around his visa. “They think that with these ten days of ill-treatment they have humiliated Djokovic,” the Serbian president told the local press. “They humiliated themselves, Djokovic can come back to his country with his head held high and look everyone straight in the eye.”