Novak Djokovic said he still feels “a bit of trauma” when he travels to Australia, stemming from his deportation in 2022 because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19.
“The last couple of times that I landed in Australia, to go through passport control and immigration, I had a bit of trauma from three years ago,” Djokovic said in an interview with Melbourne’s Herald Sun newspaper published Monday, ahead of the Australian Open. “And some traces still stay there when I’m passing passport control, just checking out if someone from immigration zone is approaching.”
Djokovic, who has won 10 of his 24 Grand Slam championships at Melbourne Park, continued: “The person checking my passport—are they going to take me, detain me again or let me go? I must admit I have that feeling.”
Back in 2022, Djokovic sought, and initially obtained, an exemption that would allow him into the Australian Open—and the country—even though there were strict rules requiring shots to protect against the coronavirus. But after his flight landed, he was detained at the airport, his visa was canceled and he was sent to an immigration hotel.
