Australian Open: parents claim Novak Djokovic a ‘prisoner’ at detention hotel, where there is ‘no fresh air’ and food is ‘disgusting’
- World No 1 tennis star’s parents hit out at Australian authorities for ‘persecuting’ their son and ‘keeping him in captivity’
- Refugee at same facility in Melbourne says detainees are served ‘mouldy bread’ and cannot open their windows
Novak Djokovic’s parents have hit out at Australian authorities for “persecuting” their son and “keeping him in captivity” after cancelling the world No 1 tennis star’s visa.
01:50
Tennis star Djokovic denied entry to Melbourne ahead of Australian Open over vaccine exemption error
The issue had sparked a backlash among locals and Prime Minister Scott Morrison vowed Djokovic “won’t be treated different than anyone else”, with all travellers arriving in Australia needing to be double vaccinated unless they can provide sufficient evidence for a medical exemption.
The 20-time grand slam champion, who has won the last three Australian Open titles, was then taken to a hotel for government detainees while he awaits a Federal Court hearing on Monday, with his lawyers having appealed against his deportation.
Djokovic was being “persecuted”, his father Srdjan Djokovic told Serbian media at a press conference on Thursday. “They’re keeping him in captivity. They’re stomping all over him to stomp all over Serbia and the Serbian people. [Scott] Morrison [Australia’s prime minister] and his like have dared attack Novak to bring Serbia to its knees.”