1 of 5 | Tennis star Novak Djokovic of Serbia was denied entry into Australia this week due to issues with his visa. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI |
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Jan. 7 (UPI) -- Novak Djokovic took to Instagram on Friday to thank fans for their support amid his prohibited entrance to Australia, which puts his Australian Open participation in limbo. Fellow tennis players remain split on the situation.
Djokovic, who is opposed to COVID-19 vaccination, said Tuesday that he received "exemption permission" to compete in the Grand Slam tournament, which runs from Jan. 17 to 30 in Melbourne. He arrived Wednesday in Melbourne, but was held at the airport and sent to a local hotel due to visa issues.
Australia requires people 12 and older to be vaccinated to enter the country, unless they receive a medical exemption. Federal and state officials said earlier this week that evidence for Djokovic's exemption would be examined upon his arrival and he would be sent home if it was found insufficient.
Djokovic is expected to spend the weekend in his hotel room, awaiting a deportation hearing Monday, where his attorneys will attempt to convince officials to let him stay in the country to defend his title in Melbourne.
"Thank you to people around the world for your continuous support," Djokovic wrote Friday on Instagram. "I can feel it and it is greatly appreciated."
Most of the world's top tennis players have not addressed the issue on social media, but several were asked about the situation this week at news conferences for the Melbourne Summer Set. The tournament serves as a warmup for the first Grand Slam of the season.
No. 93 Nick Kyrgios of Australia was one of several players to back Djokovic. No. 6 Rafael Nadal of Spain was among those to voice support for those who follow the rules to compete.
"Look I definitely believe in taking action, I got vaccinated because of others and for my mom's health, but how we are handling Novak's situation is bad, really bad," Kyrgios wrote Friday on Twitter.
"Like these memes, headlines, this is one of our great champions but at the end of the day, he is human. Do better."
American Tennys Sandgren also backed the top men's player.
"Just to be crystal clear here, two separate medical boards approved his exemption," Sandgren tweeted Thursday. "And politicians are stopping it. Australia doesn't deserve to host a Grand Slam."
Nadal, No. 2 Daniil Medvedev of Russia and former world No. 1 Andy Roddick of the United States were among those who said Djokovic should comply with Australia's rules for border entry.
"If he wanted, he would be playing here in Australia without a problem," Nadal told reporters Thursday. "He makes his own decisions, and he is free to take his own positions, but then there are some consequences.
"Of course I don't like the situation that is happening. In some way, I feel sorry for him. But at the same time, he knew the conditions since a lot of months ago, so he makes his own decision.
"I believe in what people who know about medicine say. If those people say we need to get vaccinated, we need to get the vaccine. I went through COVID and have been vaccinated twice. If you do this, you don't have any problems to play here. That's the only clear thing. ... The world, in my opinion, has suffered enough to not follow the rules."
Medvedev, expected to become the Australian Open favorite if Djokovic exits the field, said Djokovic should be able to play if his exemption is ruled to be legitimate, but should be denied if it is not allowed.
"It sounds easy, but it's very tough in real life," Medvedev told reporters Thursday.
Tournament director Craig Tiley said earlier this week that 26 unvaccinated players applied for exemptions, and a "handful" were approved.
