Djokovic loses fight against Australia deportation

Tennis star Novak Djokovic lost his final bid to avoid deportation from Australia on Sunday, with a Federal Court unanimously rejecting his appeal to stay in the country and defend his Australian Open title.

“The orders of the court are that the amended application be dismissed with costs,” Chief Justice James Allsop said.

The tennis star, who is unvaccinated, traveled to Melbourne last week claiming an exemption due to a positive PCR test result in December.

Yet, border control rejected his exemption and placed him in an immigration detention center where he spent four nights.

The back-and-forth case has kept the international community on its heels, as daily reports tried to outline the complicated case between Djokovic and Australia.

Immigration Minister Alex Hawke said Friday he used his ministerial discretion to revoke the Serbian athlete’s visa on public interest grounds.

Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that Hawke was “protecting the sacrifices” Australians made during the pandemic.

The legal battle created diplomatic tensions between Australia and Serbia as well as a debate over national vaccination rules._Agencies