Novak Djokovic is arriving in Dubai after deportation from Australia

January 18, 2022: -On Monday, Novak Djokovic arrived in Dubai after his deportation from Australia more than its required Covid-19 vaccination ended the No. 1-ranked men’s tennis player’s hopes of defending his Australian Open title.

The Emirates plane carries Djokovic touched down after a 13 1/2-hour flight from Melbourne. He had argued in court that he should stay in the country and compete in the tournament under a medical exemption because of a coronavirus infection last month.

At Dubai International Airport, 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 of baggage claim as many passengers from his plane had already picked up their bags on the carousel.

Dubai, the United Arab Emirates commercial capital, 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, which include 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 does not play while recovering from injury, and Nadal is the former Australian Open men’s champion in the Monday tournament.

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

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