Why Tennis Superstar Novak Djokovic Has Been Detained By Australian Authorities

News that Djokovic had been approved to play in the Australian Open, which begins 17 January, was revealed by the player himself on Tuesday.

Australia requires all foreign visitors entering the country to be double vaccinated. Otherwise, they need to complete 14 days in quarantine. But Djokovic, who has said he is opposed to vaccination, said on social media he had gained a medical exemption.

Tennis Australia, the sporting body which runs the Australian Open, confirmed the top seed had been granted medical exemption by two independent medical panels organised by Tennis Australia and Victoria state.

Valid reasons for exemptions include an acute medical condition such as an inflammatory cardiac illness. A Covid-19 infection in the past six months also counted under the policy, which was announced in December and endorsed by the Victorian state government.

Federal authorities back then had no objection.

Australians were angered by the decision to grant Djokovic an exemption, which led to a change in Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s position.

Djokovic, who has previously expressed anti-vaccination sentiments, has been a polarising figure during the pandemic. In 2020, he apologised after staging a commercial tennis tour where he and other tennis players contracted Covid-19.

In Australia, meanwhile, locals have lived through months of lockdown and restrictions. Most have followed government directions to get vaccinated, and over 90% of the adult population is now double-dosed.

But the country is also in the depths of its worst Covid-19 wave yet with over 70,000 new cases reported on Thursday. This is placing immense strain on hospitals and businesses, and public anxiety is high.

Initially, Mr Morrison had said he accepted the Victorian government’s decision to grant Djokovic and other tennis players medical exemptions. On Tuesday, he said federal authorities, who control the borders, would “act in accordance” with the state’s decision as “that’s how it works”.

But amid the public outrage, by Wednesday he had backflipped. Mr Morrison warned that Djokovic would be sent home if he failed to provide proper medical proof for his exemption.

Some have accused Mr Morrison of politicising the issue. The prime minister himself is under pressure amid the Covid-19 surge, and all of this is happening months before a federal election scheduled for May.