Karen Andrews, Australia’s Home Secretary, filed a request on Saturday to “postpone the final hearing until Wednesday, January 12, 2022,” five days before the tournament is due to start.
No reasons were given for the postponement request, but it came just hours after Djokovic’s legal team submitted a 35-page document outlining the player’s defense against the decision to revoke his temporary visa.
As part of that defense, it was revealed that Djokovic had been given a medical exemption ahead of the Australian Open, having recently recovered from Covid-19.
In a letter dated December 7, leaked to journalists this week and cannot be independently verified by DailyExpertNews, it appears that the organizers of the Australian Open incorrectly informed unvaccinated players that they were allowed to enter Australia to participate. to the tournament.
Court documents released on Saturday confirm that Djokovic – who previously opposed Covid-19 vaccines and vaccine mandates – was unvaccinated when he arrived in Australia on January 5.
His visa hearing is now scheduled for Monday at 10 a.m. local time (6 p.m. ET Sunday), with a decision whether he can remain in Australia and is expected to enter the tournament at 4 p.m. (12 p.m. ET).
If the court upholds the revocation of his visa, Djokovic will be deported as soon as appropriate travel arrangements can be made.
According to Craig Tiley, the CEO of Tennis Australia, it was “conflicting information” that led to the granting of waivers to unvaccinated players ahead of the Australian Open.
In an interview with DailyExpertNews affiliate 9 News on Sunday, Tiley declined to blame one party. He said Tennis Australia was in “weekly” contact with the Australian Home Office and that all parties involved were operating in a “very challenging environment”.
Tiley added that he would like to see Djokovic play at the Australian Open. The world No. 1 hopes to win his 10th Australian Open title and 21st grand slam title this month in Melbourne.
Djokovic’s detention since Thursday in Park Hotel, an alternative detention center for refugees and asylum seekers, has received a lot of attention; supporters have gathered outside to release him, while others have highlighted the plight of the 30 or so refugees also held at the hotel.
“He is free to leave any time he chooses to do so, and Border Force will actually facilitate that,” Andrews told ABC on Friday.
In an interview with Serbian national TV channel RTV Pink on Saturday, the country’s prime minister, Ana Brnabic, said Djokovic will be given “gluten-free meals, exercise equipment and a laptop” while incarcerated.
According to court documents published on Saturday, Djokovic has repeatedly requested to be transferred to a “more suitable detention place that would allow him to train” before the Australian Open.
Brnabic said she had spoken to Australian Foreign Secretary Marise Payne but was unable to reverse the decision to keep Djokovic at Park Hotel pending the outcome of his trial.
“He’s still at the Park Hotel, but I hope we’ve made his stay a little more bearable with the concessions we’ve made for him,” she said.
Josh Pennington contributed to the reporting.
