Novak Djokovic must leave Australia: his visa is canceled

Arrived in Melbourne this Wednesday evening at 11:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. in Belgium) with a medical exemption in his pocket which should allow him to participate in the next Australian Open (January 17 to 30), Novak Djokovic was arrested by the border police when he got off the plane and placed in solitary confinement for several hours because, according to initial information, his entourage did not ask for the right document to enter the territory but a visa. which does not take into account the medical exemption.

Throughout the night, the world number one remained “in a room where no one can enter , explained his father, Srdjan, to Serbian media, B92. In front of this room, there are two policemen. “ D ‘according to several Serbian and local media, Djokovic was not allowed to use his cell phone.

More than the visa problem, the arrival of the Serbian in Australia caused an uproar against the backdrop of a political conflict between the leaders of the State of Victoria and the federal government. The first having validated the arrival of the Serbian before going backwards while noting that the panels of experts who allowed Djokovic to obtain a medical exemption did not verify the origin or the veracity of the documents. The final decision to send the Serb home, to place him in migratory detention or to allow him to enter Australia must ultimately be made by the border police.

A decision which fell ten hours after the arrival of the Serbian with a visa canceled for lack of sufficient evidence for its exemption and the order to leave Australia . The player’s lawyers, supported by the Serbian president, then launched an appeal procedure via a federal injunction to stop his extradition. A Melbourne judge, Anthony Kelly, was scheduled to review the Serbian’s request around 4 p.m.