The Serb, who was unable to play in the 2022 edition of the Australian tournament, remains marked by this experience but looks to the future with appetite.
Serbian Novak Djokovic stressed that he could probably never forget the episode of his expulsion from the country a year ago, due to his non-vaccination against Covid-19, but expressed his will “to go aheadwhen starting his 2023 season in this country.
Djokovic arrived in Adelaide on Tuesday, where he is due to play his first tournament of the year before trying to win a 22nd Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in Melbourne (January 15-29), which would allow him to equal Rafael Nadal’s record.
This is the Serb’s first visit to the mainland island since his expulsion last January after a judicial soap opera, and “Djoko“Returned to this dark episode on Thursday during his first meeting with the local press.
«It’s one of the things that doesn’t let go, that stays with you for, I guess, the rest of your life.“Admitted the 35-year-old player on the sidelines of a training session in Adelaide.
«As I said, I had never experienced such a thing, and I hope never to face it again“, he added.
Most, “evoking a life experience“, Novak Djokovic also expressed the wish “to go ahead“, noting in particular the good reception that had been given to him until then.
«I’ve only been here two days but (…) everyone has been very pleasant, extremely nice to me“, he noted.
«I’ve always felt really good in Australia, I’ve always played my best tennis and I’ve had a lot of support there, so I hope to have another great summer.Austral, added the Serb, who has already won the Australian Open nine times.
The Serbian ended 2022 in 5th place in the world, after a truncated season due to his unvaccinated status. He had started it by trying to circumvent the vaccination obligation then in force in Australia with a derogation deemed unjustified by the Australian authorities. This episode had earned him deportation from the country after a stay in a detention center, criticism from the local political class and legal action.
Novak Djokovic had also been handed a three-year ban, but that ban was lifted following a change of government in Australia earlier this year.
