(Belgrade) Novak Djokovic called his detention and expulsion from Australia which prevented him from defending his Australian Open title a “regrettable event” and thanked the Serbian president for his support.
Posted at 9:43 a.m.
An 11-day saga over Djokovic’s visa ended with the Serb being deported for failing to meet Australia’s strict COVID-19 vaccination requirements.
The world No. 1 met Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic on Thursday and described the events in Australia as “unexpected, to say the least”.
“I wanted to meet you today because, as a citizen of Serbia, I felt the need to thank you for the great support that you, as President of Serbia, gave me and all state institutions during the unfortunate events in Australia, Djokovic said.
“Although I was alone in detention and faced many problems and challenges, I did not feel alone. I had a huge support mainly from my family, from all my relatives, from the whole Serbian nation, from many people with good intentions from the region and the world. »
PHOTO ZORANA JEVTIC, REUTERS
Novak Djokovic’s (left) meeting with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic (right) has drawn criticism from some of his supporters in the Balkan country where he is generally seen as an icon and a hero.
He did not give details of the events in Australia, promising to give his “version” later.
Djokovic’s encounter with the increasingly autocratic Vucic has drawn criticism from some of his supporters in the Balkan country where he is generally seen as an icon and a hero. Critics say Vucic used the event to boost his popularity ahead of the general election scheduled for April.
The meeting took place after prosecutors of the Republic of Serbia the day before rejected claims made by some Western media that Djokovic used a false positive test for COVID-19 to try to enter Australia.
To enter Australia, Djokovic submitted a positive test issued in Serbia on December 16 for a visa waiver on the grounds that he had recently recovered from the virus.
He is not vaccinated and the Australian government later decided to cancel his visa and deport Djokovic, saying his presence in Australia could stir up anti-vaccination sentiments.
Rafael Nadal won the Australian Open to earn a 21and record major Grand Slam singles title, one more than Djokovic and Roger Federer.
Vucic praised Djokovic and said he was certain he would beat Nadal and Federer at the upcoming French Open and Wimbledon — the Grand Slam tournaments where Djokovic could also face restrictions if he did not get vaccinated.