World No.1 ….
The best-ranked tennis icon….
G.O.A.T…The greatest of all time…
Just one away from a record of 21 Grand Slam titles….
Novak Djokovic was all this….
A fan favourite, someone with an amazing sense of humour and an appetite for fun…But how did the star player who went to Australia with hopes of getting his 21st title end up in a diplomatic soup?
So, what exactly happened that led to the immigration soup?
The Serbian tennis great had his Australian visa revoked in January when he went there for the Australian Open….
Djokovic said that he was granted an exemption from vaccination, but this sparked angry reactions, along with a massive political and diplomatic row. He was initially detained in Melbourne, before being deported.
Also Read 'I miss tennis' says Djokovic after controversial Covid-19 vaccine statement
Let’s dive a little deeper into how the events unfolded…
December 16, 2021
Djokovic tested positive for coronavirus
December 17, 2021
Djokovic attends a charity event in Belgrade, posts online show him maskless
December 22, 2021
Novak tests Covid negative
December 24-25, 2021
Novak was spotted playing street tennis in Belgrade, maskless
December 30, 2021:
Tennis Australia grants Novak a temporary medical exemption from taking the vaccine, citing his recovery from Covid
January 4, 2022
“I’m heading Down Under with an exemption,” posts Djokovic on Instagram
This is where all hell broke loose….
Amid a global pandemic, Australia has had one of the toughest Covid lockdowns and strictest protocols in the world…..
And citizens, celebrities or players have all followed these norms to the T….
So much so…that Aussie cricketers had to quarantine in Maldives and other countries ….and even had to leave tournaments unfinished.
January 5: Djokovic touched down at Melbourne
January 6: Australia’s Border Force detained him in a room at the airport overnight, not allowing him to enter the country…
January 7: After spending 72 hours in a hotel for asylum seekers, a Aussie court agreed to hear Djokovic’s appeal against his cancelled visa.
January 10: Djokovic freed from detention, a judge quashes the govt’s decision to cancel his visa…but Australia’s immigration minister, Alexander Hawke, says he would weigh the use of personal powers to deport him anyway.
January 11: Social media posts crop up pointing to irregularities on Djokovic’s immigration form, saying he had actually traveled 14 days before entering Australia
January 12: Djokovic apologizes for the error on his immigration form… this adds fuel to fire….
January 14: Australian minister Alexander Hawke uses his discretionary powers to cancel Djokovic’s visa for a second time
January 16: A federal court dismisses his appeal to overturn the visa cancellation…Djokovic returns home…
But why is the Serbian star opposed to vaccines?
Djokovic’s aversion to taking the vaccine or as he puts it “inserting anything” in his body, is not new.
In April 2020, well before Covid vaccines were available, Djokovic said he was "opposed to vaccination" later clarifying that he was "no expert" and would keep an "open mind" but wanted to have "an option to choose what's best for my body."
This very idea that Djokovic holds dear…. has its roots very deep in his upbringing… Raised as an orthodox Christian in war-torn Serbia, the world no 1’s long-held belief in alternative medicine seems to have fuelled this resistance…
As ridiculous as it might seem, Novak Djokovic also has a track record of questionable “scientific” beliefs
Believe it or not…. In his book Serve to Win, Djokovic described how in 2010, a Serbian, Dr Igor Cetojevic, who calls himself a “specialist in energetic medicine”, once pressed a piece of bread against his stomach…to infer he had a gluten allergy.
Later during an Instagram live, he claimed that positive thought could "cleanse" polluted water, adding that "scientists have proven that molecules in water react to our emotions."
Djokovic says he has been keen on finding what he calls, “basic ways to survive”, without having to get into “outside intervention”.
Also Read Novak Djokovic holds major stakes in a firm developing Covid drug, says CEO
Is Djokovic the new hero for anti-vaxxers?
While fans have come to Djokovic’s defense, the visa dispute in Australia and his comments on vaccination, have galvanised the anti-vaxxers to hail him as a hero, even though Djokovic has never explicitly come out in support of anti-vaxxers.
Novak Djokovic in a recent interview now says, he is willing to miss tournaments to avoid Covid vaccination…
“The principles of decision-making on my body are more important than any title, or anything else”
For Djokovic, not taking vaccines may be about his personal choice…but for an influential sportsperson of his stature, who has the power to shape the opinions of millions, Djokovic’s stance has been rather myopic….and that is where his beliefs stand in conflict with his identity as a sporting icon of our times.
But that’s the thing about stars….we always put them on a pedestal…. but that… only makes their fall from grace … fueled by their beliefs, even more shocking.
Also Read 'Extremely disappointed': Vaccination sceptic Djokovic sent back from Australia