Djokovic lands in Serbia after deportation from Australia

Djokovic was expected to receive a hero’s welcome from his countrymen, many of whom think he was unfairly treated in Australia. But only handful of fans waving the Serbian flag greeted him at the airport in the capital, Belgrade.

At the same time, clouds gathered over what would come next for the player: French officials said a new law requiring vaccination to enter sports venues would have no exceptions. Much could change between now and the start of the French Open, which is the next Grand Slam, in late May. But that raised the possibility the recent saga in Australia would be not just a blip but an ongoing challenge for the unvaccinated athlete, who is increasingly being held up as a hero by the anti-vaccine movement.

Novak Djokovic arrives back in Serbia after deportation from Australia pic.twitter.com/VVQUUOskAN

— Mirror Sport (@MirrorSport) January 17, 2022

Earlier on Monday, Djokovic had arrived in Dubai after his deportation.

The Emirates plane carrying Djokovic touched down after a 13 1/2-hour flight from Melbourne, where he had argued in court he should be allowed to stay in the country and compete in the tournament under a medical exemption due to a coronavirus infection last month.

At Dubai International Airport, arriving passengers wearing mandatory face masks collected their bags and walked out of the cavernous terminal. Over an hour after Djokovic’s flight arrived, he did not come out of baggage claim as many passengers from his plane already had picked up their bags on the carousel.

It wasn’t immediately clear where Djokovic planned to travel next. The Dubai Duty Free tennis tournament, which Djokovic won in 2020, doesn’t start until February 14.

Dubai, the commercial capital of the United Arab Emirates, doesn’t require travelers to be vaccinated, though they must show a negative PCR test to board a flight.

Djokovic had won nine Australian Open titles, including three in a row, and a total of 20 Grand Slam singles trophies, tied with rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal for the most in the history of men’s tennis. Federer is not playing while recovering from injury, and Nadal is the only former Australian Open men’s champion in the tournament that began Monday.

Djokovic’s visa was initially canceled on January 6 by a border official who decided he didn’t qualify for a medical exemption from Australia’s rules for unvaccinated visitors. He was exempted from the tournament’s vaccine rules because he had been infected with the virus within the previous six months.

He won an appeal to stay for the tournament, but Australia’s immigration minister later revoked his visa. Three Federal Court judges decided unanimously Sunday to affirm the immigration minister’s right to cancel Djokovic’s visa.

Vaccination amid the pandemic was a requirement for anyone at the Australian Open, whether players, their coaches or anyone at the tournament site. More than 95% of all Top 100 men and women in their tours’ respective rankings are vaccinated. At least two men — American Tennys Sandgren and Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert — skipped the first major tournament of the year due to the vaccine requirement.

Djokovic’s attempt to get the medical exemption for not being vaccinated sparked anger in Australia, where strict lockdowns in cities and curbs on international travel have been employed to try to control the spread of the coronavirus since the pandemic began.