Posted on 02/16/2022 15:02
(credit: Getty Images)
In his first public appearance since exile from Australia, in the second part of a lengthy interview given to British TV channel BBC, Novak Djokovic talks about the reaction of his tennis colleagues to his appearance at the Melbourne Park complex for four days . He reports that he had several frustrating forms from other tennis players and other event goers and that his training didn’t follow a normal routine.
After being barred from entering Australia due to documentation problems and not presenting proof of full vaccination against Covid-19, Djokovic has a court decision favoring Judge Anthony Kelly based on formal aspects and non-compliance with deadlines. Was also. Australian officials.
Four days later, however, Immigration Minister Alex Hawke decided to revoke Djokovic’s permanent visa to the country for the second time, saying that his presence in Australia was in compliance with rules governing the development and control of anti-vaccination groups. may affect the failure. Virus novel coronavirus pandemic. The tennis player appealed and the matter was taken to court again, but the court decided to deport the Serb.
“I was free for four days and I was training, but it wasn’t the normal training days that I usually have before a Grand Slam. Helicopters were flying over me at every practice I had at Rod Laver Arena. The cameras too. And my colleagues in my profession hurt me a lot,” Djokovic told the BBC, which showed the second part of the interview on Wednesday. “I felt this energy and this form from my teammates and the people in the tennis facilities. Obviously, I understand their perception based on what they’ve seen in the media.”
The Serbian also told of the period he was imprisoned in a hotel that serves as a detention for immigrants. “Definitely it was not a pleasant thing, but I don’t want to sit here complaining about the condition of the detention center as I was there only for seven days,” he said.
“When I arrived I felt helpless because I was not allowed to use the phone for three hours. It was early in the morning and I could not sleep because basically I was questioned every 30 minutes. There was a lot of enquiry, they started, they stopped and then I had to wait for the person who had to talk to his superiors. It remained like this all night,” explained the 34-year-old.
Djokovic also commented on his 7-year-old eldest son Stefan’s admiration for Spain’s Rafael Nadal. “He asked me a few days ago where Rafa would play the next tournament and I would be too. I told him I don’t know, but I hope it will happen soon. Then I asked why and he replied: ‘I really Wanted to take a photo with Rafa’. It was very difficult for me to watch the Australian Open final because I really wanted to be there. My wife was on Medvedev’s side, but my son was on Rafa’s side and he made it up jumped at every point gone”, she said.
