Researched by: Sara Varghese & Ankita Ghosh 

Remind me about Djokovic…

The Serbian has won a record 20 Grand Slam titles—and is #1 in the world rankings. But unlike his fellow tennis greats—Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer—Djoko has never come close to winning a popularity contest. And he’s been described as “the least loved GOAT in sports history.” Why is that?

One: People aren’t overly fond of Djokovic’s tendency to celebrate his victories on the court with displays like this:

Two: Djokovic has had terrible tantrums on court—ranting at umpires and ball kids over the years. Then there’s the time he got himself tossed out of the US Open for accidentally hitting a line judge in the throat with a ball struck in anger, like so:

Three: Since the beginning of the pandemic, he has also firmly established a reputation as a total kook—sharing theories about emotions purifying toxic food and polluted water:

Four: Last but not least, he has not won any new fans—other than fervent anti-vaxxers—for his resistance to Covid safety rules, and of course, the vaccine. 

• Back in April, 2020, he declared: “Personally, I am opposed to vaccination, and I wouldn’t want to be forced by someone to take a vaccine in order to be able to travel.”
• Then in June, 2020, he organised an exhibition tournament in Serbia—flouting all Covid advisories. The result: Djokovic, his wife Jelena, three other players, three coaches and one player's pregnant wife tested positive.
• But that didn’t slow Djoko down. In January, 2021, he wrote a letter to Australian Open organisers with a set of “suggestions”—asking for reduced isolation periods and for players to be moved to “private houses with tennis courts.” And he was promptly called a “tool” by his fellow players for acting entitled.
• Djoko later insisted, "My good intentions for my fellow competitors in Melbourne have been misconstrued as being selfish, difficult and ungrateful.” FYI: He won the Open that year.

Ok, so what happened now?

What happened is fairly straightforward:

• On January 4, Djokovic tweets: “Today I’m heading Down Under with exemption permission. Let’s go 2022”—before boarding a flight from Dubai to Melbourne. This is an exemption from the Australian Open’s rule that all players must be vaccinated.
• Tennis Australia confirms the same: “Djokovic applied for a medical exemption which was granted following a rigorous review process involving two separate independent panels of medical experts.”
• No one reveals why Djokovic received the exemption—and he will not confirm whether he has been vaccinated.
• There’s a huge backlash in Australia—especially in Melbourne, the venue for the Australian Open. The city has gone through six lockdowns—and experienced the highest number of Covid-related deaths in the country.
• PM Scott Morrison declares: “If he’s not vaccinated, he must provide acceptable proof that he cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons. If that evidence is insufficient, then… he’ll be on the next plane home. There should be no special rules for Novak Djokovic at all.”
• Djokovic lands at the airport on January 5—when he is held for 10 hours by border authorities. His exemption is withdrawn and his visa is cancelled. And he’s transferred to an immigration detention facility. 
• Djokovic challenges the decision in a federal court—which held a hearing yesterday. 
• The judge rules in his favour, and gives him permission to stay in Australia and participate in the Open. The reason: After detaining Djokovic, “the border authorities promised to let him speak with tournament organisers and his lawyers early on Thursday morning, only to cancel his visa before he was given a chance.”
• Judge’s quote to note: “The point I’m somewhat agitated about is, what more could this man have done?”

What we learned: The court proceedings confirmed that Djokovic is not vaccinated. The transcripts also reveal that he was granted a medical exemption from Tennis Australia on December 30. The grounds for the exemption: Djokovic tested positive for Covid on December 16. But the Australian government’s rules clearly state that a previous infection is not grounds for an exemption—which is only granted “in specific situations where a drug, procedure, vaccine, or surgery should not be used because it may be harmful to a person's health.”

Here are the unexplained bits: In November, Australia’s Health Minister sent a letter to tournament director Craig Tiley stressing that a Covid infection in the past six months does not meet the requirements for a quarantine-free entry. And yet, on December 7, tournament organizers sent a letter to unvaccinated players informing them that a Covid infection within the past six months—along with an accompanying doctor’s certificate—would qualify them for an exemption. 

Point to note: In their defence, tennis authorities said they had sent the December 7 letter based on information taken from the government’s Smart Traveller website:

“The Tennis Australia statement included a link to the website, but that link does not include information about exemptions to the country’s vaccine requirements. The group said it was referred to the website by Greg Hunt, Australia’s minister for health and aged care. On Sunday, Tennis Australia blamed the situation on ‘contradictory information’ received during months of communication with the federal government.”

Yup, that is how embarrassingly screwed up this is.

Here’s the really strange part: Djoko doesn’t become infected until December 16, as pointed out by sports journalist Ben Rothenberg:

“[W[ith only a month left until the #AusOpen began, what was Djokovic planning to do if he *didn't* get a positive test for Covid? Was that somehow his plan for getting into the #AusOpen? Contracting a disease? Truly odd.”

Adding to the shitshow: We now have photos of Djokovic mingling maskless with little children right after his results came back positive in December:

So what happens now?

Djokovic is back in training, and tweeted out this photo of himself last night:

But, but, but: Government lawyers already warned the judge that the immigration minister has the power to still cancel his visa. Also this: The ruling did not directly address the issue of whether the exemption on the grounds of an infection in the past six months was valid. After the ruling, the ministry spokesperson said: “The minister is currently considering the matter and the process remains ongoing.”

What’s at stake: If Djokovic’s visa is cancelled again, it will trigger an automatic three-year ban on entry into the country—so it’s not just this Australian Open that’s at stake.

The bottomline: We don’t have any grand pronouncements on immigrations rules or celebrity privilege. But this meme is pretty darn funny:

Reading list

The Independent has a very good timeline of the Djokovic drama. Associated Press has more on the ruling, while The Guardian looks at what is likely to happen next. Washington Post and CNN are best at decoding exactly why this mess occurred. You can see the chaotic scenes of ‘Free Nole’ protesters here. NBC News has a good report on the hotel where Djokovic was held during his detention—which also houses asylum seekers. BBC News profiles Djokovic’s controversial career.