London, September 23 (BUS): Novak Djokovic is still waiting for his news on whether he will be allowed to return to the Australian Open in January after he missed the tournament this year because he is not allowed to face COVID-19.
“It’s not up to me now,” Djokovic said on Thursday at the Laver Cup. “So I hope to get some positive news.”
Djokovic is a 21-time Grand Slam singles champion – a total that ranks second among men, behind Rafael Nadal 22 times and one ahead of Roger – and has won nine of those titles at Melbourne Park.
But he was deported from Australia last January after a 10-day legal saga that culminated in the revocation of his visa; He was originally granted exemption from strict vaccination rules by two medical teams and Tennis Australia in order to play in the Australian Open.
Australia has since changed its border rules – since July 6, incoming travelers no longer have to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccinations, or even submit a negative COVID test. AP reports.
After Djokovic’s visa was revoked, the Australian Border Force said that “a person whose visa has been revoked may be subject to a three-year exclusion period that prevents the granting of another temporary visa”.
However, she added, “The exclusion period will be considered as part of any new visa application and may be waived in certain circumstances, noting that each case is evaluated on its own merits.”
A Tennis Australia spokesperson said on Friday that no decision on Djokovic’s visa for the January 16-29, 2023 tournament was due to be made.
The 35-year-old, who is from Serbia, has insisted he won’t get hits against the disease caused by the coronavirus, even if it means not attending tennis events.
He was unable to enter two of this season’s four Grand Slam tournaments, including the US Open that ended this month. The United States and Canada currently ban entry to foreign nationals who have not received COVID-19 vaccines, so he also missed four other North American events in 2022.
Djokovic made it to France, where he lost to Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals at the French Open in June, and England won the title at Wimbledon in July.
The Laver Cup, which begins on Friday, is Djokovic’s first competition since Wimbledon.
“I have no regrets. I mean, I feel sad that I couldn’t play (at the US Open), but that was a decision I made and I knew the consequences,” he said on Thursday. “So I kissed them and that’s it.” Djokovic has spent more weeks at number one in the ATP rankings than anyone else, breaking Roger Federer’s record, number 7 this week, partly because of a lack of activity and partly because no rating points were awarded to anyone. At Wimbledon this year.
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