Australian Open

[mike carey]

56 minutes ago, BSR said:

I don't know what to believe any more, but according to ESPN, Novak is still in limbo.  That is, he has not been deported yet.  He will be allowed to stay in Australia until Monday.  Who da heck knows what if anything will be resolved by then.  While Novak can afford the best lawyers money can buy and all of Serbia up to the President is fighting for him, the Australian federal government seems awfully entrenched in their position.  The drama continues ...

He appealed to the Federal Court, and they adjourned the case until Monday, so effectively he can't be deported while the case is pending. That court can't be relied on to do what the government wants, so I'm not sure why the adjournment was until Monday rather than tomorrow (it's 2200 on Thursday now). Perhaps they want to give the parties enough time to resolve it themselves. As you said, the drama continues!

[+ Lucky]

I hope that his privileged primadonna is cast out of the country, and soon!

[+ Charlie]

He came to the country with the reasonable understanding that he was welcome. The confusion over whether he had the technically correct type of visa does not seem to be his fault, but it gives the government a chance to reconsider in light of the adverse political reaction. He didn't demand a right to play (that's his father's position, not his), but went through the process of requesting an exemption and apparently having it granted before he went to Australia. I'm not a personal fan of Novak, but it sounds like it is not his fault that he has become a political football.

[+ WilliamM]

Rafa Nadal disagrees.

"If one is vaccinated he can play  in the Australian Open any where else" or words to that effect

Comment:

Novak Djokovic is apparently not vaccinated.

The excuse for the Serbia Croatia tournament last year was covid19 wasn't that serious there.

Novak's dad is comparing his son to Jesus on the cross

Edited January 6, 2022 by WilliamM

[+ WilliamM]

7 hours ago, Charlie said:

He came to the country with the reasonable understanding that he was welcome. The confusion over whether he had the technically correct type of visa does not seem to be his fault, but it gives the government a chance to reconsider in light of the adverse political reaction. He didn't demand a right to play (that's his father's position, not his), but went through the process of requesting an exemption and apparently having it granted before he went to Australia. I'm not a personal fan of Novak, but it sounds like it is not his fault that he has become a political football.

It would not have became  a "political football" if Novak Djokovic was vaccinated, as Rafael Nadal has pointed out.

[BSR]

Wow, Serbia's president has made Novel's entry into Australia his personal mission:  "I've just finished my telephone conversation with Novak Djokovic," Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic posted on Instagram.  "I told our Novak that the whole of Serbia is with him and that our bodies are doing everything to see that the harassment of the world's best tennis player is brought to an end immediately.  In line with all norms of international law, Serbia will fight for Novak, truth and justice."

[+ WilliamM]

Why should the prime minister of Australia change his mind because the president of Serbia disagrees with him?

[mike carey]

1 hour ago, WilliamM said:

Why should the prime minister of Australia change his mind because the president of Serbia disagrees with him?

Absolutely! He won't care one jot what the Serbian president says or thinks. In every issue bar this one, the Serbian president would neither know nor care what an Australian PM thought or did. Nil-all draw. This all depends on the Federal Court now, although you can never rule out a sudden technicality that prompts a reassessment (if the public mood shifts).

[+ WilliamM]

Novak Djokovic's lawyers maintain he tested positive for covid19 last month (December).

Despite covid19, Novak was skiing in Serbia?  

Edited January 8, 2022 by WilliamM

[+ WilliamM]

Novak Djokovic didn't wear a mask at a public event the day after he tested positive for covid19 in December 2021.

That photo undercuts his lawyer's case on Monday in Australia.

[+ Charlie]

Djokovic made a choice not to be vaccinated, which he had to know carried a risk for his participation in the tournament. Whoever handled his visa application made an error by choosing the wrong kind of application. Tennis Australia and the Victoria government made an error in choosing a procedure for exemption from the vaccination requirement to get into the state and the tournament grounds, without getting assurance from the federal government that the procedure would also allow the player to get into the country first. Choices have consequences, and these choices turned out badly for Novak, but ultimately he has to face the fact that he was responsible for the initial choice.

Now there is the possibility that because he arrived without a proper visa, he could be banned from re-entering the country for three years. If he accepts responsibility for the debacle, I hope the government will choose to waive that requirement next year. The Serbian President is not doing Novak any favor by turning it all into an international incident.

[+ WilliamM]

And Novak Djokovic make a  mistake by appearing in public without a mask surrounded by children after he tested positive for covid19 last month.

Edited January 8, 2022 by WilliamM

[mike carey]

1 hour ago, WilliamM said:

And Novak Djokovic make a  mistake by appearing in public without a mask surrounded by children after he tested positive for covid19 last month.

The only plausible explanation for this is that he made that appearance between taking the test and receiving the result, and local regulations didn't require you to isolate for that period. Here you have to do that if you are having the test because you suspect yon might have the virus, although not if it's a test to clear you for travel. In his case there would seem to be no reason to have a clearance test, as absent vaccination a negative test wouldn't let him into Australia. The only conceivable reason for having a test was the hope that having a recent infection would exempt him from needing to be vaccinated. On the basis of all that, his appearance with those children shows nothing but a wilful disregard for their safely.

[BSR]

I found a Twitter thread posted by a retired immigration lawyer who confirms what I've suspected all along, that Novak's chances of winning entry into Australia are somewhere between zero and zilch.

 

 

[mike carey]

31 minutes ago, BSR said:

I found a Twitter thread posted by a retired immigration lawyer who confirms what I've suspected all along, that Novak's chances of winning entry into Australia are somewhere between zero and zilch.

 

 

Yup, not much wriggle room there!

[mike carey]

WTF? Djokovic has won his case and the cancellation of his visa has been quashed, with the Home Affairs Department ordered to pay costs. I have yet to see any further details of the reasons for the decision. I can only speculate they ruled on the administrative processes by which the visa was cancelled since it is pretty clear that he didn't qualify for a visa to be issued.

The immigration minister could still use his discretion to cancel the visa anyway. He may be reluctant to do that as it would then be a political rather than an administrative one.

[BSR]

2 hours ago, mike carey said:

WTF? Djokovic has won his case and the cancellation of his visa has been quashed, with the Home Affairs Department ordered to pay costs. I have yet to see any further details of the reasons for the decision. I can only speculate they ruled on the administrative processes by which the visa was cancelled since it is pretty clear that he didn't qualify for a visa to be issued.

The immigration minister could still use his discretion to cancel the visa anyway. He may be reluctant to do that as it would then be a political rather than an administrative one.

When I fired up the tablet, a notification popped up, "Novak wins visa case."  Hmm, that can't be right, lemme check.  Tennis.com's top story:  Novak wins visa appeal

Men's Tennis Forum can be a lousy source for news because most forum members have such a strong bias (3 warring factions: Roger, Rafa, Novak), but the thread about the hearing was accurate.  The die-hards watching the proceeding kept commenting that Novak's lawyers were winning whereas the government's lawyer was making weak, unconvincing arguments.  I assumed those were just Novak fanboys seeing what they wanted to see, but whaddya know.

Judge Anthony Kelly ruled that Novak won on a procedural fairness issue because the government canceled Novak's visa without allowing Novak enough time to respond.  The catch is that the state of Victoria says that prior infection within the last 6 months is acceptable for entry whereas the Australian federal government says it isn't.  So the Immigration Minister Alex Hawke still has grounds to cancel Novak's visa.  The question is whether it would be politically wise for him to do so.

In Novak's favor, when the government lawyer said the Immigration Minister planned to appeal, Judge Kelly warned him not to.  Since the government was ordered to pay all Novak's legal fees (you know he hired the best lawyers money can buy), an appeal might be a waste of even more taxpayer dollars.  The MTF guys are saying that Anthony Kelly would preside over the appeal as well.  If the government ignores him and appeals anyway and certainly if Kelly is the presiding judge, the appeal will be over before it starts.

[+ WilliamM]

Novak Djokovic's mom called his former lodging in Melbourne "a so-called hotel"

Ha ha

[+ Charlie]

While all this legal wrangling goes on, Novak has been sitting in a hotel, not able to practice for a tournament that starts at the end of this week. If he does get to participate in the tournament and doesn't do well, he will have a good excuse.

BTW, I have heard nothing about the visas for his team. Were they vaccinated, or did they have the same kind of exemption he had?

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

11 minutes ago, Charlie said:

While all this legal wrangling goes on, Novak has been sitting in a hotel, not able to practice for a tournament that starts at the end of this week. If he does get to participate in the tournament and doesn't do well, he will have a good excuse.

BTW, I have heard nothing about the visas for his team. Were they vaccinated, or did they have the same kind of exemption he had?

I just imagine him using a Wii to keep his serve in good shape.

[BSR]

On 1/8/2022 at 5:09 PM, mike carey said:

The only plausible explanation for this is that he made that appearance between taking the test and receiving the result, and local regulations didn't require you to isolate for that period. Here you have to do that if you are having the test because you suspect yon might have the virus, although not if it's a test to clear you for travel. In his case there would seem to be no reason to have a clearance test, as absent vaccination a negative test wouldn't let him into Australia. The only conceivable reason for having a test was the hope that having a recent infection would exempt him from needing to be vaccinated. On the basis of all that, his appearance with those children shows nothing but a wilful disregard for their safely.

I just saw a clip of a press conference with Novak's parents and his brother Djordje.  First when Djordje was asked about Novak's medical documentation, he insisted it was all valid, to the point where the Australian government's lawyer never challenged it during the hearing.  Then when a German reporter asked if Novak knew he was positive, why did Novak attend a large children's event the next day, Djordje responded, "This press conference is adjourned."

Heads the government wins, tails Novak loses.  While the Aussie government's lawyer never questioned the positive test, plenty of people are wondering if it was forged.  If Novak admits it was, then not only is he instantly deported, he faces perjury charges.  If the positive test is legit (note that Novak took the test @1pm on 12/16, knew the result 7 hours later according to court documents), then Novak faces a public relations disaster.  Children aren't really at risk from Covid.  The problem is they bring the virus home and expose their parents and more critically grandparents.  Apparently that was a problem with Novak's Adria Tour.  A lot of young people were infected, most likely at the nightclub where all the tennis players were partying, brought the virus home, and infected whole multigenerational households.

Even if Novak did indeed forge the positive test, I doubt he'll ever admit it.  After all, who in their right mind wants to face a perjury charge.  So now Novak has to deal with this looming PR catastrophe.  Honestly, even if Novak makes the most heartfelt apology, while people will respect his taking responsibility, he will face a backlash like nothing he, nor any other tennis player for that matter, has ever seen.

 

 

Edited January 10, 2022 by BSR
Added tweet

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

I haven't been this engaged in testimony since they put Christine Vole/Helm on the stand.

[+ MysticMenace]

OMG - Novak's brother can also get it - excited for my Djokovic brother fantasy dream tonight 😉

 

[mike carey]

ABC TV interviewed a lawyer who had been watching the proceedings. He said that after Djokovic's team had presented his case, the Commonwealth had effectively folded, agreeing to the judge's proposed ruling. After the ruling had been handed down, Counsel for the Commonwealth advised that the Minister would now examine the option of exercising his discretion to cancel the visa anyway. The judge thanked Counsel and said that if the Commonwealth had proceeded to take up that option without mentioning it in court, he would have been 'incandescent with rage'. Presumably he would have been unimpressed that the Commonwealth had only conceded in his court because it knew it had a 'get out of gaol free' card. (I don't know what he could have done about, perhaps issue an injunction preventing any action being taken to effect the cancellation until after the Open?)

A potential stumbling block for Djokovic is that in his arrival declaration he said that he had not travelled in the 14 days before arrival in Australia when he had been in both Spain and Serbia in that period. To me, that would be a pretext not a reason to cancel his visa.

[BSR]

11 hours ago, mike carey said:

A potential stumbling block for Djokovic is that in his arrival declaration he said that he had not travelled in the 14 days before arrival in Australia when he had been in both Spain and Serbia in that period. To me, that would be a pretext not a reason to cancel his visa.

This baffles me.  The whole world knew of Novak's travels because his training in Marbella was all over social media.  Why would he "forget" to mention it on his visa application?