Tournament boss pushes to welcome Novak Djokovic, expelled in January

Remember January 2022. The world of tennis, and far beyond, was passionate about the sports-political-judicial saga “Novak Djokovic in Australia”, concluded with the expulsion of the Serb from the island-continent. Not vaccinated against Covid-19, the then world No. 1 had also been banned from the country for three years.

End of the story ? No. Because Craig Tiley put a coin in the machine by confiding in the daily life of Melbourne The Age. “I spent some time with Novak at the Laver Cup, launched the director of the Australian Open. We talked generally. He said he would obviously love to come back to Australia but he knows it will ultimately be the decision of the federal government. »

Regarding the organizers of the first Major of the calendar year (scheduled for January 16-29, 2023), “what we are saying at this point is that it is up to Novak and the federal government to settle the matter, said Tiley. From then on, we will comply with any instructions. »

To date, the Serb with 21 Grand Slam titles (including nine in Melbourne) therefore remains banned from the country. But a window of opportunity could exist with the change of government, led by Labor Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, replacing Conservative Scott Morrison.

The Russians will be able to play, without representing their country

If he won Wimbledon this year, Djokovic had to give up the US Open this year, in addition to the Australian Open, due to his unvaccinated status.

In his interview at The Age, Craig Tiley also addressed the issue of sanctions related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He thus assured that the Russian and Belarusian players would be “eligible”, if the tournament were to be played today, but on an individual basis, that is to say without representing their country.