Novak clarifies movements as visa saga continues
MELBOURNE: Novak Djokovic knew he had tested positive for Covid-19 when he attended a newspaper interview and photo shoot at his tennis center in Serbia last month, saying on Wednesday he made an “error of judgement” and should have immediately gone into isolation.
Djokovic moved to clarify “ongoing misinformation” about his movements while he was infectious last month and about errors on the travel document he used to enter Australia, where his visa was revoked and then reinstated in a Covid-19 vaccination saga that has overshadowed the days leading up to the Australian Open (AO).
A statement was posted on Djokovic’s social media accounts while the men’s tennis No. 1 was in Rod Laver Arena holding a practice session against Tristan Schoolkate, a 20-year-old Australian.
The nine-time and defending AO champion is in limbo before the year’s first tennis major starts next Monday, a week after he won a legal battle allowing him to stay in the country.
But he still faces the prospect of deportation because he’s not vaccinated against Covid-19, a decision entirely at the discretion of Australia’s immigration minister if deemed to be in the public interest.
Reports emerged that Djokovic attended events in his native Serbia last month after testing positive on December 16, including presenting awards to children on December 17. There’s also been speculation that errors on his immigration form could potentially result in the cancellation of his visa.
On the form, Djokovic said he had not traveled in the 14 days before his flight to Australia. The Monte Carlo-based athlete was seen in Spain and Serbia in that two-week period.
Djokovic on Wednesday described the speculation as “hurtful” and said he wanted to address it in the interest of “alleviating broader concern in the community about my presence in Australia.”
Djokovic, Barty top seeds for AO
The uncertain status of top-ranked Djokovic didn’t stop AO organizers from listing him as the top seed for the Grand Slam tournament beginning on Monday at Melbourne Park.
As expected, homegrown talent and top-ranked Ash Barty was given the No. 1 seeding in the women’s singles draw when the list was released on Tuesday. Defending champion Naomi Osaka is seeded 13th.
Djokovic won a court battle to compete in the AO, but still faces the threat of deportation because he is not vaccinated against Covid-19. He’s level with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal with 20 Grand Slam singles titles each. A 10th AO win on January 30 in the men’s final would give him the men’s all-time record.
Federer is not playing in Melbourne while he continues his recovery from right knee surgery.
Daniil Medvedev, who beat Djokovic in the US Open final last year to prevent the Serbian player from capturing a calendaryear Grand Slam, is seeded second, followed by Alexander Zverev at No. 3, Stefanos Tsitsipas at No. 4 and Andrey Rublev at No. 5.
Nadal is seeded sixth, followed by Matteo Berrettini.
Felix Auger-Aliassime is at No. 9 and Denis Shapovalov 14th. The pair combined to win the ATP Cup for Canada last Sunday.
The 25-year-old Barty has two Grand Slam singles titles — the 2019 French Open and last year’s Wimbledon — but she dearly wants to win a major on home s o i l . No Australian woman has won the title here since Chris O’Neill in 1978.